A Chipotle outlet in California made 100 of its loyal customers sick within just one day, on August 19 to be exact. Not to worry, though - it's not because of the extra guacamole.
Customers who ate from the Simi Valley Town Center Chipotle store reportedly had various symptoms including diarrhea, high fevers, and chills. It gets even worse: majority of these customers had to go to the hospital.
CBS reports the incident of one customer, Kam Zreik, who suffered from a 101-degree fever, which was similar to other patients who were also admitted to the hospital.
"My aunt who works in the ER told me 19 people came in the night I got sick with food poisoning," said Kam Zreik.
In fact, it wasn't just the customers! The Chipotle store had to shut down for the day, allegedly due to "lack of staffing;" whereas 17 of the Chipotle location's employees also felt ill.
The management claims that the store's entire kitchen was cleaned, in addition to replacing all the food items with fresh ingredients before re-opening. Chipotle's statement, released on Saturday, reads:
"The safety and well being of our customers is always our highest priority. When we are contacted by customers who reported feeling poorly after visiting our restaurant in Simi Valley, we immediately began a review of the incident, and have taken all of the necessary steps to ensure that it is safe to eat there."
While it is still unclear what had caused the alleged food poisoning cases for many of its patrons, an investigation from health officials say that various combinations of factors could have led to the illnesses.
It turns out that the same store also barely passed inspection due to "less-than stellar conditions." These included flying insects around the premises, sanitary violations, equipment that were directly connected to sewers, a "shoddy" bathroom, and unlicensed workers handling food.
