Our law firm has been contacted by several people who were diagnosed with Salmonella food poisoning (salmonellosis) after eating at the Fig & Olive restaurant in Washington D.C.
The outbreak has continued to grow over the last few days. To date, there are 60 confirmed cases of illness, including 10 people in Washington D.C. and Virginia and 50 people in 4 other states. An additional 150 cases are being investigated.
The Fig & Olive was closed for 6 days due to the Salmonella outbreak, but it opened today after it met the following requirements needed for the DC Department of Health to reinstate operations:
- Provided evidence/invoices of the clean-up and sanitization of the kitchen/premises;
- Verified employee health training, which included signed forms;
- Destroyed current food inventory;
- Corrected all violations cited in recent inspections;
- Provided a Standard Operating Procedure for food handling and preparation; and
- Implemented a training program to reinforce good retail practices.
The department of health will increase surveillance of the Fig & Olive to ensure compliance with food safety regulations.
In the last 2 weeks, there have been reports of hundreds of people being diagnosed with Salmonella. Over 400 people were sickened by contaminated cucumbers and over 50 by tomatoes. The investigation into this outbreak is preliminary. It was most likely caused by contaminated produce.
Salmonella can cause severe illness, including dehydration, kidney failure, meningitis, pancreatitis and reactive arthritis. In some cases, as in the cucumber outbreak, people can die. These cases can give rise to personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits seeking money damages for pain and suffering, medical expenses, lost wages and similar expenses and losses.