24 Oct 2012
The number of confirmed E. coli cases thought to be linked to restaurant in north Belfast has now reached 90 – almost twice the number that were confirmed yesterday.
The Public Health Agency (PHA) yesterday recorded 49 cases and 181 probable instances following the food poisoning problems faced by Flick’s restaurant in the Cityside Mall.
However, the agency has now announced 90 definite and 179 probable cases of food poisoning, although a spokesperson said this was the result of test results being returned and was not entirely unexpected.
Although E. coli bacteria often do not produce clear symptoms for several days, some people have already said that this food poisoning outbreak is Northern Ireland’s worst ever
Flick’s restaurant has been voluntarily closed and its management are co-operating with the PHA and Belfast City Council’s environmental health team in their investigation of the outbreak.
“The increase in confirmed cases, which were recorded at 49 yesterday, is not unexpected and is as a result of probable cases becoming confirmed following testing,” a PHA spokesperson said.
“We would not expect to see a major decrease in the number of probable cases at this stage of the investigation as new cases are still coming forward.”
Copyright Press Association 2012