The father of a Boston College basketball player who got sick after eating from a Chipotle restaurant near campus says his son has “lost close to 10 pounds” since Sunday as public health officials investigate what hit more than 80 students who ate there in recent days.
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The number of students presented with gastrointestinal symptoms rose to 80 on Tuesday, according to Boston College spokesman Jack Dunn. Chipotle said that there’s no evidence to suggest the Boston incident is related to previous cases, noting that there’s been no confirmed cases of E. coli connected to the restaurant operator in MA.
If the incident in Boston does turn out to be linked to norovirus, then that would not be as serious as E. coli, Maxim Group analyst Stephen Anderson told Reuters.
Elaborating on the details of the situation, the school’s health authorities said that several students had come to them complaining of various gastro intestinal issues.
It is the latest black mark on the Mexican food giant, which has battled an E. coli epidemic that has sickened 52 people across nine states since October.
Chipotle has found itself in more bad press as another outbreak linked to one of their restaurants is at the center of a norovirus outbreak in Boston, Massachusetts. It causes as many as 21 million illnesses annually.
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc.is a publicly-traded company headquartered in Denver.
On Tuesday, the Boston Public Health Commission confirmed the presence of norovirus at Chipotle in Cleveland Circle. Shares closed Monday’s trading at 551.75 and opened Tuesday down 3.5 percent at 532.00.
Scott Zoback, of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, said it has been notified of the ailments and is investigating in conjunction with the Boston Department of Public Health.
This is the company’s third food safety incident since August.
Early symptoms of both E.coli and norovirus include vomiting, fever and diarrhea.
Chipotle executives noted the exposure period for the E. coli cases appears to be over.
The company has warned that sales are expected to fall as much as 11 per cent at established locations for the fourth quarter as a result of the E. coli outbreak. It can spread through infected people, contaminated food or water, or by touching contaminated surfaces.
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Chipotle closed their Cleveland Circle location in Boston.
