The Daily Campus

Issue date: 4/3/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Erik Kong The Adam's Mill restaurant in Manchester. The Manchester Department of Health is currently investigating to see if the restaurant is the source of a norovirus that has infected 30 UConn students. The restaurant was open for business on Thursday.

The Manchester Health Department has been conducting an investigation since early Tuesday to determine what caused 30 students to fall ill after a sorority formal at The Adam's Mill, a Manchester restaurant, Saturday night.

Norovirus, which is found in fecal matter of those infected and causes vomiting, diarrhea and stomach cramping, can be contracted by eating or drinking contaminated food or liquids, touching contaminated surfaces or objects and placing the hand in the mouth or having direct contact with an infected person, according to the Center for Disease Control's Web site.

The two-part investigation being conducted focuses on both the epidemiological and food safety aspects of the problem, said Maryann Cherniak Lexius, director of the Manchester Health Department.

According to representatives from the restaurant, The Adam's Mill is still waiting on the health department to pinpoint the cause of the sickness and provide more information.

The representatives said that although press reports indicated that the illness was food-borne, it is possible that the sickness is viral in nature, meaning it is passed from person to person.

According to the representatives, the illness - which resulted in students suffering from vomiting and diarrhea - might have been passed by students touching a doorknob or railing. The establishment, which plays host to special banquets as well as weddings, was open for business as usual Thursday.

Students who attended the event, which was sponsored by the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority, were asked to complete a survey that would help determine what caused the illness, Lexius said. In addition, those who got sick were asked to submit stool samples.

The health department called a team of local inspectors from the food health protection program to investigate the kitchen environment, the food itself and the food handlers at the restaurant, Lexius said.

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