Herald Writer
EVERETT — The Snohomish Health District temporarily shut down Everett’s El Paraiso Mexican Grill last week after 62 people who ate there between April 1 and 8 complained of bouts of diarrhea and vomiting.
In addition, seven others who did not eat at the restaurant but were exposed to those who did became sick later, Jane Ballard, the health district’s epidemiologist, said Monday.
"This is one of the biggest (outbreaks) we’ve had in a long time confined to a single restaurant," said Rick Miklich, who oversees food inspectors for the countywide public health agency.
Although the cause of the outbreak is not yet known, the restaurant’s bean dip, guacamole and salad items such as lettuce and tomatoes have been associated with the illness, Ballard said.
The vomiting and diarrhea is thought to be caused by a Norwalk-like virus, she said. The virus causes problems of the stomach and intestinal tract and sometimes food poisoning.
The restaurant, which opened in November, is at 2801 Colby Ave. It serves up to 300 customers a day.
After shutting down the restaurant last Tuesday, health district inspectors told it to take a number of steps, including: throwing out all prepared food, sanitizing food preparation areas; and having all employees take day-long training in food preparation and handling.
After a follow-up inspection, the restaurant was cleared to reopen Thursday, Miklich said. Additional checks will be conducted.
"The restaurant has been cooperative," Miklich said. "They were attentive when we were doing remedial stuff with them. My assumption is they got the message."
No further problems have been reported.
"If we get no more phone calls, I’ll feel comfortable that there are no more issues," Miklich said.
Restaurant owner Benjamin Guerrero said: "My goal is to keep the restaurant nice and clean and to give excellent service.
"We try to make everything fresh over there," he added. "I don’t know what happened."
Although the illness has not yet been tied to food poisoning, a common misconception is that people immediately become sick from food poisoning, Ballard said.
Depending on which type of organism causes the illness, people can become sick 12 to 48 hours later, she said. For this outbreak, it took about 35 hours.
"It’s not always the last thing you ate that makes you sick," Ballard said.
Last year, inspectors temporarily shut down six area restaurants for violating health standards for sanitation or food storage. Most of the restaurant license suspensions resulted from food-handling problems, specifically failure to keep food at required temperatures.
The health agency has 12 inspectors who conduct routine checks on 2,500 restaurants, delis, coffee stands, business and school cafeterias, and other places where food is sold. All inspections are unannounced.
You can call Herald Writer Sharon Salyer at 425-339-3486
or send e-mail to salyer@heraldnet.com.
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