Five-star hotel's chicken pate suspected as 80 guests fall sick after fundraiser
The Luxury five star hotel ‘The Lowry’ in Manchester is the at the centre of a huge food poisoning probe after 80 guests fell ill after attending a fundraiser dinner for ‘The Message’ youth charity.
The diners reported fever, diziness, vommiting and diarrhoea after attending the event at The Lowry, which has been dubbed as Manchesters most fashionable hotel. This outbreak is being linked to a batch of chicken pate served at the dinner. Investigations are at an advanced stage with the HPA and officers from Salford Council. This is said to be the first incident of this kind in the hotels 10 year history.
Around 200 people are understood to have attended the fundraiser including Stockport Solictor Alex Speed of Francis Alexander Solicitors, who also fell ill, the diners were infected Campylobacter and symptoms can last for up to ten days. According to Mr Speed, his clients illnesses lasted from a few days to hospitalisation, in 2 extreme cases. He said: 'Based on what our table ate, I know that the people who had the soup, as a starter, didn't get ill. It's reasonable to assume the pate was responsible.' Mr Speed has since launched compensation claims against The Lowry for an increasing number of individuals who attended ‘The Message’ function. He said “ The Campylobacter has caused no end of problems to 7 out of the 10 diners on my table. Thankfully, my own Mother, who is 78, realised almost immediately, that the pate was not as she would have expected and left almost all the dish. The bacteria and the after-effects could be very damaging for someone of her age; another of my guests had a pre-existing bowl conditions but is still suffering, almost 15 weeks on!”
The Lowry Hotel has since said that it was carrying out a full and in-depth investiagtion with environmental experts into the outbreak of Campylobactor which can be caused by undercooked meat. Campylobacter can cause diarrhoea, cramps and abdominal pain. It causes about 55,000 cases of food poisoning a year in the UK. Dr Rosemary McCann, a consultant with the HPA, said 80 guests had so far reported symptoms – and a number of cases of campylobacter had now been confirmed by laboratory tests. She said: “Investigations are still ongoing, including analysis of a questionnaire returned by guests.” Hotel bosses confirmed that the pate dish had been prepared by hotel staff for the dinner on October 8. The dish has now been taken off the menu while the investigation goes on.
Treatment of Campylobacter is generally little apart from rest and keeping up fluid intake, although antibiotics can be prescribed. Diagnosis of the illness is made by testing a sample of faeces. Roughly 25% of individuals experience symptom relapse.
Francis Alexander Solicitors specialist Lawyer Mr Geoff Graham, who also became ill after attending the function, is now acting for more than 20 diners who have all suffered varying degrees of symptoms. He said “ It is a pretty poor reflection on a hotel of this caliber if the campylobacter has emanated from their kitchens. Many of my clients feel extremely upset and aggrieved as many have lost wages and been ill for weeks, rather than days” Mr Graham has over 30 years experience in litigation and dealing with such claims.
Have you suffered food poisoning at a function, whilst on holiday or on a cruise in the last 3 years? If so, contact us immediately. All our cases are dealt with on a “no win-no fee” basis and you will also keep 100% of any compensation awarded.
Francis Alexander Personal Injury Manchester is a firm of solicitors specialising in compensation claims, accident claims and conveyancing transactions.
