Dozens of shoppers are poisoned by pub’s Sunday lunch – together with one who took leftovers residence in doggy bag just for the canine to fall sick too
Dozens of diners have been struck down with food poisoning after tucking into a pub’s Sunday lunch.
The Corner House Inn in Llangynwyd, Wales, temporarily shut its doors last week after Public Health Wales linked multiple illnesses to meals served there.
Bosses were ‘devastated’ by the outbreak and closed the premises and carried out a deep clean while officials swooped in to investigate.
Testing has since identified the presence of Clostridium perfringens, a bacteria commonly associated with large-scale catering where food may not be kept at safe temperatures.
Public Health Wales (PHW) has since confirmed 43 people have fallen ill and said the risk to the public is low.
As news of the outbreak spread, customers began sharing their ordeals on Facebook, claiming entire dining parties had fallen ill.
Even a family pet was said to have suffered symptoms after being fed leftover meat, with one customer revealing: ‘I would say its food related my daughter in law ate with her friends and fetched meat home for the dog and even the dog was ill along with the whole party the main thing is that the source is found and corrected its a shame but one of them things.’
Last week, the Corner House Inn Llangynwyd in, Wales, temporarily shut its doors last week after Public Health Wales linked multiple illnesses to meals served there
Another said: ‘I definitely think it’s food related as all my party that ate here Sunday have been ill, but it’s not passed on to any other people that any of us live with since home.’
Despite the scare, regulars have rallied in support of the pub, praising its transparency and insisting they will return once the issue is resolved.
In its first post sharing the news of the outbreak, the owners said on December 1: ‘We have taken all necessary steps to work with the customers and environmental health to find out the cause for this.
‘We contacted environmental health ourselves and decided to close the business until we had the correct information.
‘We have spent hours with a thorough inspection with environmental health officers today.’
As the news of the outbreak came in, ill customers shared their experiences.
One said: ‘ I’ve been ill all day also. Dinner was gorgeous, as usual. Never had any issues prior to yesterday so it seems highly unlikely that this was a result of anything to do with hygiene, etc.
‘We were a party of four, all ate the same thing and I’m the only one to have become unwell. Everybody thoroughly enjoyed the food. The only things I had that the other three didn’t were a Pepsi max and mint sauce.’
Another said: ‘Sorry to have to write this as the meal was great as always, but we ate as a party of 5 at 2pm (four beef, one turkey) and all of us have had “digestion” problems today.
‘Hope things get sorted soon as you are a great restaurant.’
Another added: ‘I’ve been in contact with the environmental health as a party of ten, four different households and all ill Ive tried ringing the pub yesterday and today but can’t get an answer. Like other people often eat here with no issues, I’m sure it will be sorted soon
But the business was flooded with encouraging comments from faithful customers who said this wouldn’t deter them from eating there in the future.
One said: ‘Your dedication to finding the cause and keeping your customers safe is truly commendable.
‘Sorry to hear this Wayne, and I’m sure you’ll sort this out . Well done on taking the correct procedure, I’m sure everything will be fine. Looking forward to our Christmas meal next Tuesday, good look hope this awful thing for you will be resolved soon.’
Another added: ‘Best place. Best people. Best food. This happens. It won’t change anything. Keep doing what you do.’
The Mail has approached Public Health Wales for more information.
