Burien Fresh Smoothies in King County, Washington, closed for salmonella
Health officials in Seattle and King County, Washington, are investigating a potential case of salmonella contamination at Burien Fresh Smoothies located at 15712 1st Ave South in Burien. Since August 15, seven people from three different meal parties have reported that they became ill after having food and beverage at the smoothie restaurant. Two of those were hospitalized briefly. All reported visiting Burien Fresh Smoothies between August 6 and August 8.
The source of the customers’ illnesses has not yet been determined, but food safety appears to be an issue at Burien Fresh Smoothies. Environmental Health investigators visited the restaurant on August 15 and found that the restaurant was serving cooked pork prepared at the restaurant owner’s home, which is not an approved food safety practice. The restaurant was directed to immediately stop serving pork-based food items and to remove them from their menu, although one of the customers who became sick and who was confirmed to have salmonellosis did not consume any pork products.
Pork issues aside, the business has been closed pending directions from health officials for restaurant staff to conduct a thorough cleaning and disinfection of their establishment, adopt safe food handling practices to minimize cross contamination risks, and discard any remaining processed ready-to-eat food products. There is no indication that any employees of the restaurant have had any symptoms consistent with salmonellosis.
Salmonella contamination can cause serious gastrointestinal symptoms, including diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting. Some cases can require hospitalization.
If you ate at Burien Fresh Smoothies between August 7, 2018, and August 16, 2018, and have experienced any of these symptoms, contact the food poisoning lawyers at 1-888-335-4901 to learn more about your legal options.
