Patrons of the 800 Degrees Three Fires restaurant in Fort Wayne, Indiana may be at risk for hepatitis A infection, warned health officials Friday.
A worker at the restaurant tested positive for the virus, prompting the Allen County Health Department to issue a public health advisory.
The Department is urging customers who ate or drank at the 800 Degrees Three Fires restaurant on Illinois Road between May 18 and May 26, 2013 to get the hepatitis A vaccine if they have not already had it.
new outbreak of a hepatitis A strain rarely seen in the Western Hemisphere is believed to be associated with frozen mixed berries purchased from Costco is being investigated by multiple agencies, including the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. At least 30 illnesses are involved, including sicknesses in Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, and Nevada.
According to the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment, Townsend Farms Organic Antioxidant Blend frozen berries purchased from Costco appear to be the source of this outbreak.
The outbreak strain has been identified by CDC as hepatitis A virus (HAV) genotype 1B, a strain that circulates in North Africa and the Middle East. It was associated with last year’s outbreak in Europe involving frozen berries and another in British Columbia involving frozen berry blend with pomegranate seeds from Egypt.
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