Six New York city residents are exhibiting signs of E. coli food poisoning after eating at local Taco Bells, the Department of Health said yesterday.
The cases are as yet unconfirmed, according to department Spokesman Andrew Tucker, but the people have had symptoms of severe diarrhea and abdominal cramps – signs of the E. coli bacteria.
Three of the victims ate at Taco Bells restaurants in New York City, although officials couldn’t say exactly where, while the three other sick New Yorkers had eaten at Taco Bells in Nassau County.
The current health scare isn’t just hitting customers in their stomachs – it’s hitting employees in their wallets.
“Basically, a lot of people have been cut; it’s really unfortunate,” said a manager at a Long Island Taco Bell, who asked not to be identified because of the gag order the food chain has put on its workers.
“For example, I have a single mother who has two kids. I had to cut her because I don’t have any hours – and it’s right before Christmas. I just feel Taco Bell is being punished for something they had no control over.” The source said that employees eat the food, and none of them have gotten sick so far.
The source said that the 40 restaurants on Long Island are down to just a small trickle of customers – mostly people who haven’t heard of the E. coli scare. That revenue stream doesn’t even come close to covering salaries or overhead.
One Taco-Bell worker at a closed franchise in Middlesex County, N.J., echoed the same sentiments.
“Here it is Christmas, a time when I’m hoping to pick up extra shifts, and now I’m not getting any shifts,” she said. “I have two kids. This is already hurting me, I hope they get it figured out soon.” Another underemployed Taco Beller in Bergen County blamed the corporate office for mishandling the entire situation.
“If you ask me, they should have taken better control of this from the beginning instead of waiting a few days until it all blew up,” said the worker, Henry.
“Now we don’t have jobs, and we don’t know how long it’s going to be before we go back to work. It’s bulls – – – t man!” With Post Wire Services