Food Poisoning Outbreak Linked to Restaurant in Newark, NJ
A popular Newark restaurant is under investigation after a salmonella food poisoning outbreak hospitalized a number of customers during the holidays.
A number of diners from a baptism celebration and an employee party who ate at the Iberia Peninsula Restaurant have fallen ill, with a number of them hospitalized or on antibiotics for what doctors suspect is salmonella poisoning. City health officials are currently investigating the restaurant, but have not yet issued either a health warning or confirmed that the illnesses are caused by a salmonella outbreak.
At least nine people who ate at the restaurant on Christmas Eve and the weekend following Christmas have fallen ill according to reports by local media. At least two party-goers, including a 71-year old man who is suffering kidney problems, were hospitalized.
Iberia Peninsula is a popular Spanish and Portuguese restaurant in Newark’s Ironbound neighborhood. It is an outlet of the larger Iberia Restaurant across the street. City health inspectors say they have watched food preparation practices at the restaurant and have determined that it can continue to operate while they await test results on the illnesses.
Salmonella is a type of bacteria that attacks the gastrointestinal tract, causing mild to severe food poisoning infections. For most healthy adults, symptoms of food poisoning from salmonella typically resolve after a few days or weeks. However, young children, the elderly, and individuals with compromised immune systems have an increased risk of suffering severe food poisoning after ingesting the bacteria. If not properly treated, some cases of salmonella food poisoning can lead to hospitalization, dehydration or death.
2 comments
After attending a babtism party on Dec. 27th at Newark’s Iberia Peninsula my husband and I both went to the emergency room with dehydration. I am currently on antibiotics and still continue having symptoms and my husband was admitted into the hospital and was recently released this past wednesday. He was hospitalized for 5 days. We still have symptoms of diarreah, night sweats, headaches and fatigue. We can’t beleive that Iberia Peninsula is still open for business. How many more people have to be infected?
As recently as Jan. 2 a woman who shares the same Dr. with us
came into the dr’s office with dehydration after eating at Iberia Peninsula on Jan. 1st 2010. Apparently, the restaurant still isn’t
clean. People continue to get sick as the investigation goes on.
Last night my husband and I ate with my Dad at Tehran Spanish Tavern on Greene St, in Newark, about 1 hour later, my husband and we’re so sick all night…Not sure what to make of this, it’s very upsetting, we are recovering now.