A suspected food poisoning incident at a Hi-Lai Harbour restaurant at Kaohsiung Arena was not caused by norovirus or rotavirus, but might have been caused by pathogenic bacteria, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday.
Testing for viral pathogens was negative for the two common causes of diarrhea, CDC Deputy Director-General Tseng Shu-hui (曾淑慧) said.
As of 9am on Monday, the number of people who had sought medical attention after dining at the upscale buffet restaurant in Zuoying District (左營) on Friday and Saturday last week had increased to 52 since Saturday, when 11 diners were first reported to have fallen ill, the Kaohsiung Health Department said in a statement.
Photo: CNA
All of the 52 people reported diarrhea and abdominal pain, while a handful also reported nausea and vomiting, the department said.
It had previously collected specimens from seven people who fell ill after eating at the branch and from 48 employees who handle food at the restaurant, as well as food samples.
Testing on the customers and employees came back negative for viral pathogens, meaning it is likely that pathogenic bacteria were involved, Tseng said.
Common bacteria that cause foodborne illness include Vibrio parahaemolyticus, salmonella, enteropathogenic Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Vibrio cholerae and Clostridium botulinum, she said, adding that testing was being conducted to clarify the situation.
Earlier on Monday, the owner of the Hi-Lai Harbour branch said that it was working to improve food safety and would take full responsibility if it is found to be linked to the suspected food poisoning.
Hi-Lai Foods Co, the restaurant’s owner, in a statement on Monday apologized to those who were ill after dining at the restaurant, saying the cause of the incident was under investigation, and that it would conduct a post-incident review and devise operational improvement measures.
Hi-Lai Foods said that it would shoulder all responsibility based on the investigation results and initiate insurance claim applications, adding that its affiliated restaurants are all covered by product and public liability policies.
Pending the release of the test results, the Kaohsiung restaurant voluntarily closed on Saturday and Sunday to undergo extensive cleaning.
It remained closed through yesterday to conduct staff training on food sanitation standards to ensure improvements are made, the company said.
The department said that the restaurant should implement improvement plans based on inspection and investigation results, while bolstering internal controls and retraining staff to ensure food safety before the end of the suspension period yesterday.
City health officials are to conduct a follow-up inspection this week and if sanitation issues persist, the restaurant could face a fine of NT$60,000 to NT$200 million (US$1,843.77 to US$6.15 million), the department said, citing the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法).
Additional reporting by Lee I-chia
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei
A woman who allegedly attacked a high-school student with a utility knife, injuring his face, on a Taipei metro train late on Friday has been transferred to prosecutors, police said yesterday. The incident occurred near MRT Xinpu Station at about 10:17pm on a Bannan Line train headed toward Dingpu, New Taipei City police said. Before police arrived at the station to arrest the suspect, a woman surnamed Wang (王) who is in her early 40s, she had already been subdued by four male passengers, one of whom was an off-duty Taipei police officer, police said. The student, 17, who sustained a cut about
RSS