Officials: Nyack Restaurant Patrons Possibly Exposed To Hepatitis A
NYACK, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Rockland County health officials have warned patrons of a Nyack restaurant that they may have been exposed to Hepatitis A.
Tony Triarsi, owner of the La Fontana restaurant at 95 S. Broadway, said a waiter was diagnosed with Hepatitis A after returning from a trip to El Salvador.
"He came back sick," Triarsi told 1010 WINS. "He went to the doctor and found out that he had Hepatitis A."
People who ate at the restaurant between March 19 and April 1 may have been exposed to the virus, the health department said.
The health department will offer free Hepatitis A vaccines on Saturday, Sunday and Monday at the Rockland County Fire Training Center in Pomona.
"People who have potentially any symptoms should call their doctor, not come for the shots," said Rockland County Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Patricia Schnabel Ruppert.
Health officials recommended that all patrons who ate at the restaurant on March 29, March 30 and April 1 receive the Hepatitis A vaccine. Those who ate at the restaurant between March 19 and March 28 will not benefit from vaccination because it is most effective within 14 days of exposure, the health department said.
"They're not really at high risk, but they're at risk enough that we're trying to be careful," Dr. Avil Vaidian, of the Rockland Health Department, told CBS 2's Lou Young.
Hepatitis is spread by consuming food or drink handled by someone already infected.
Symptoms of Hepatitis A include fever, fatigue, poor appetite, nausea, dark-colored urine and jaundice. The disease is rarely fatal and patients generally recover within a few weeks.
Triarsi said all of the workers have been vaccinated and the restaurant has been given the "all clear" by the health department.
The health commissioner said she'll eat at the restaurant this weekend, even as the free inoculations begin.
"Everything is fine, they didn't find anything wrong, they gave the OK to stay open and operate as normal," Triarsi said.
So far, the waiter is the only person to be diagnose with the infection.
You May Also Be Interested In These Stories: