NORRISTOWN, PA - Gino's Restaurant located at 2401 W Main St, Norristown, PA (West Norriton) was temporarily closed by Montgomery County Health Officials as an investigation into a deadly Hepatitis A outbreak continues. The county has also wiped all evidence of any current and past inspections from their website. As part of our ongoing series Restaurant Round-up, we monitor health reports daily of local eateries and provide weekly articles for a summary of local establishments. Gino's was inspected on 1/5/2022 in connection to this investigation. There is currently no trace of Gino's in the system and all past inspections have been removed from public view, but the link to the full report we saved the other day is still active, you can read that here.
According to the Health Advisory released by the Pennsylvania Department of Health, Hepatitis A is a highly contagious, vaccine-preventable, liver infection caused by the hepatitis A virus. Hepatitis A usually spreads when a person unknowingly ingests the virus from objects, food, or drinks contaminated by small, undetected amounts of stool from an infected person. Hepatitis A can also spread from close personal contact with an infected person.
The Health Advisory states that of 7 people who they have information on, 6 are hospitalized and they continue to investigate 1 death.
Gino's released the following statement in response to the closure, "In the recent events of this past week, we are truly devastated and heartbroken for anyone affected by the Hepatitis A outbreak. We are cooperating completely with the Montgomery County Health Department. Our restaurant has been inspected and no evidence of any airborne or transmittable disease has been found. The cleanliness of our facility, our refrigeration, food handling, and water temperatures have been approved.
This is a shock to us as it is to everyone in the community. We have been a family-owned business for over 50 years. We pride ourselves on our reputation. We strive to serve our family and friends the best quality Italian food.
Gino’s has been closed as a precautionary measure as the health department investigates a definitive source."
You can read our Restaurant Round-Up each week on our home page here.
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