The Appalachian District Health Department (ADHD) is now reporting 37 potential victims in an outbreak of salmonella food poisoning, with 7 having been laboratory confirmed and another 30 clinically indicative of salmonellosis but awaiting lab results. The Proper Restaurant, on South Water Street in Boone, North Carolina, is being investigated by health officials from the ADHD, but remains open at this time. The restaurant is located in Watauga County, where health investigators are asking anyone who ate at the restaurant on or after May 17th, who then got sick in the next few days, to contact the health department. According to Beth Lovette, ADHD Health Director, it remains unknown how the salmonella was introduced in to Proper Restaurant. Hopefully, through victim and customer questionnaires, investigators will be able to track the exact source of the salmonella.
According to salmonella lawyer Ron Simon, the actual source may not be identified. Simon explains “often the epidemiological and trace-back investigations point to a particular restaurant, but the question of how the salmonella got into the restaurant remains a mystery. We know that most salmonella outbreaks are linked to animal or human feces, but what we cannot always identify is now the feces made it into the food. It could be a sick employee, the restaurant’s failure to follow safe food handling practices, or the presence of rodents or birds in sensitive parts of the establishment.” But while the exact “how” might never be known, what we do know is that nearly 40 individuals have already been identified as victims of salmonellosis because there was a break down in the food preparation, handling, or storage.
If you or a loved one became ill after eating at the Proper Restaurant, contact one of the salmonella lawyers at Ron Simon & Associates at 713-335-4900.
