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Wahaca restaurants close as suspected norovirus outbreak sickens hundreds London Wahaca restaurants close due to suspected norovirus cases
(about 4 hours later)
The Mexican restaurant chain Wahaca has shut nine of its restaurants after a suspected outbreak of norovirus. The Mexican restaurant chain Wahaca has been forced to close several branches after more than 350 customers and staff fell ill with suspected norovirus.
Public Health England (PHE) said it had launched an investigation after 205 staff and 160 members of the public fell ill. Public Health England and environmental health officers were called in after the suspected outbreak of the winter vomiting bug struck at nine branches last week. They were all shut down, although four have since reopened.
Wahaca, founded by 2005 MasterChef winner Thomasina Miers, said it voluntarily closed the doors to nine sites. Co-founders Thomasina Miers, the 2005 Masterchef winner, and Mark Selby, said: “We assessed each case and when it became clear they were not isolated incidents, we got in touch with relevant officials at Public Health England and environmental health officers.
A spokeswoman told the Daily Mirror: “We can confirm a number of our employees and customers have reported becoming ill over the past week. “In tandem with that, we took our own precautionary measures – voluntarily closing affected restaurants, carrying out anti-viral deep cleaning at all of our restaurants, whether affected or not, and ensuring that any staff member who had reported illness remained off site until their symptoms had ceased for at least 48 hours.”
“Initial tests suggest that the cause of this illness was norovirus. Following these reports, Wahaca voluntarily closed nine sites.” The branches – all in London – that remain closed, are in Canary Wharf, Covent Garden, Oxford Circus, Soho, and Westfield in White City.
Deborah Turbitt, London deputy director for health protection for PHE, said the source of the outbreak was yet to be determined. A number of diners complained about how they had fallen ill.
She said: “Public Health England has been notified of a suspected norovirus outbreak at a restaurant chain. @jones_becki @Aimee_CN_Hughes @wahaca 6 of us went to Canary Wharf on Thursday now all have food poisoning too! 😷
“We are working closely with environmental health officers and the restaurant chain to investigate. Norovirus, which which causes diarrhoea and vomiting, is one of the most common stomach bugs and, while it is more common in winter, can be caught at any time of the year. It can be very unpleasant but usually clears up by itself in a few days.
“We have so far been made aware of 205 staff and 160 members of the public reporting illness, however these are unconfirmed cases. The virus can rapidly spread in public places and can be caught through close contact with someone with the virus (if they breathe out particles containing the virus), touching contaminated surfaces or eating contaminated food, which has been handled by an affected person who has not washed their hands.
“Currently the source of the outbreak is not confirmed and this remains under investigation.” One of the most notorious cases of norovirus at a restaurant, occurred at the three Michelin starred Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire in 2009, when at least 240 people fell ill.
Specialists cleaned all Wahaca restaurants and later reopened five affected sites, the chain’s spokeswoman said. But the spread of the virus between different branches in the same chain is unusual and health officials said they are still trying to identify the cause.
Its website showed the closed restaurants include Canary Wharf, Covent Garden, Oxford Circus, Soho and White City, all in London. Deborah Turbitt, London deputy director for health protection for Public Health England, said: “Public Health England has been notified of a suspected norovirus outbreak at a restaurant chain. We are working closely with environmental health officers and the restaurant chain to investigate.
The virus causes diarrhoea and vomiting and those afflicted generally return to full health after a few days. “We have so far been made aware of 205 staff and 160 members of the public reporting illness. However, these are unconfirmed cases. Currently, the source of the outbreak is not confirmed and this remains under investigation.”
But the NHS advises calling a GP or the 111 helpline if symptoms persist. She urged people affected to drink lots of fluids to avoid dehydration. People who suspect they have the virus are advised to try to avoid going to the GP in case they spread it to others but to call their doctor or the 111 helpline if symptoms persist.
Visitors to the Wahaca webpage for the branches that remain shut were greeted with the message: “We’re really sorry but due to unforeseen circumstances, we’ve had to close today. We hope to be open again soon, please keep an eye here for updates.”