The national food poisoning law firm of Ron Simon & Associates has already filed the first two e. coli lawsuits against the owner of Miguel’s Cocina, and may be filing more, says Ron Simon, lead attorney. “We are receiving many calls daily from victims and have found that many more people have become sick that are being reported by authorities because some either did not sought medical treatment or sought it and were treated for the symptoms without being tested for E. coli.”
Miguel’s Cocina is now open, after having been shuttered in late October for ten days. It reopened on November 3rd, following thorough cleaning and sanitizing and the discarding of all potentially contaminated food items. The staff are also in the midst of being re-trained in food poisoning prevention. According to reports, the source of the contamination has not been identified, and may have become wide-spread in the kitchen. This commonly held position is due to the length of time that patrons continued to become sick, falling ill after October 6th but prior to October 20th in most cases. According to the law firm handling the lawsuits, other callers have noted illness onset prior to this time-frame or after this time frame, making it more and more likely that there was significant cross-contamination or that sick employees kept the bacteria spreading during the time they were shedding the bacteria themselves:
“One of the first things we will delve into,” says Simon, “is whether, and how many, employees were sick and whether they worked during that period of time in which they would have been contagious.”
According to Wilma J. Wooton, an epidemiologist with the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency: “People who visited the restaurant and are feeling ill should see their doctor as soon as possible.”
All of the victims, so far, ate at one location owned by The Brigantine, Inc., the Miguel’s Cocina 4S Ranch Mexican-themed eatery. So far, no victims have been confirmed from the other restaurants owned by The Brigantine, Inc. “Right now, we are working off the theory that this outbreak was limited to Miguel’s Cocina 4S Ranch. That may still change.”
