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Amarillo IHOP Salmonella Outbreak

By Pritzker | Ruohonen

For the second time this year, the Amarillo IHOP on Western Street has been associated with a Salmonella outbreak.

According to the Amarillo Public Health and Environmental Health departments, the outbreak has sickened at least 10 people, and 7 of those ate at the IHOP located at  2100 S. Western Street, Amarillo, Texas.

ACG Texas, the franchisee that owns the IHOP, voluntarily closed the restaurant.

In June of this year, the same IHOP was closed when health officials associated the restaurant with a Salmonella outbreak that sickened over 70 people.  During that outbreak, the restaurant was closed twice.  Amarillo health officials tested the Western Street IHOP during that outbreak and found 11 of them positive for Salmonella.  The health department determined that these 11 employees helped transmit the disease.

Under the Texas Food Establishment Rules, restaurants are required to take measures to protect the restaurants’ patrons from foodborne illness (food poisoning):

• Texas Food Establishment Rules, Sec. 229.163(d): In addition to other requirements, a restaurant must “exclude a food employee from a food establishment if the food employee is exhibiting sudden onset vomiting and/or diarrhea that cannot be attributed to a noninfectious condition.” If an employee has diarrhea, the restaurant responsible for having that employee report the diarrhea to the person in charge of the restaurant, and when the restaurant is required to either keep the employee away from food or exclude the employee from the restaurant (send the employee home), depending on the specific facts of the situation.
• Texas Food Establishment Rules, Sec. 229.163(e): Restaurants are required to have their food employees wash their hands.

Our law firm has been contacted by people sickened in this IHOP Salmonella outbreak.  To contact a lawyer at our firm about an IHOP lawsuit, please call 1-888-377-8900 (toll-free), email the lawyers at Pritzker | Ruohonen or submit our online consultation form.

Full post as published by Food Poisoning Law Blog on September 20, 2008 (boomark / email).