KENT COUNTY, Mich (March 26, 2014) – The Kent County Health Department is investigating the possibility of Norovirus being spread after several people reported illnesses after being at the Beltline Bar over the weekend.
A spokesperson for the Health Department tells FOX17 they’ve received more than a dozen phone calls in the last two days from patrons that were at the restaurant who’ve reported symptoms consistent with Norovirus.
The time frame of the possible contamination appears to be Saturday and Sunday.
Symptoms of the Norovirus typically take 24 to 72 hours to develop.
The Health Department has advised the restaurant to clean using a 1/4 cup bleach to every gallon of water solution to get rid of the highly contagious virus.
The owner of Beltline Bar has taken to social media with a response, making sure to set things right with customers:
Dear Valued Customers & Friends,
“My name is Jeff Lobdell, I am the owner of the Beltline Bar. Tonight it was reported that the restaurant is being investigated for a possible norovirus incident that may have happened over the weekend. Nothing like this has happened in the restaurant’s 60 year history, but we are taking this very seriously. The health, wellness and safety our guests and staff is the most important thing to us...We want to thank the Health Department in their assistance in helping us ensure that we go above and beyond all suggested measures to protect our patrons and employees.”
The post — which can be viewed in its entirety here — also finds the owner including a phone number for customers to contact him.
This investigation follows another recent Norovirus outbreak at Comstock Park High School, where more than 90 students were absent last Thursday and about 100 students were absent last Friday because of the virus according to a health department spokesperson.
Local health officials have warned of an increase of the highly contagious Norovirus, supplying prevention tips which can be found here.
