141 students now showing signs of Chipotle-related illness

Chipotle said late Monday that it closed the restaurant after several students at Boston College, including members of the menÂ’s basketball team, reported  ” gastrointestinal symptoms” after eating at the chain.

In Boston’s case, health officials on Tuesday determined it was a norovirus that sickened the college students, which Chipotle officials acknowledged in a statement.

Earlier this month, as many as 141 Boston College students came to their health services center complaining of the classic symptoms of norovirus: vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramps.

There are no other pathogens present in the specimens tested so far and the illness on the university campus is expected to be limited to norovirus, Dunn cited the Massachusetts Department of Public Health as saying. That didn’t appear to be enough: In an online CNBC poll, 53 percent of respondents said they were less likely to eat at Chipotle in light of the incidents.

Chris Arnold, the spokesperson for Chipotle, confirmed that preliminary investigations revealed that the norovirus caused the outbreak.

“This is the height of norovirus season”, he said according to the Wall Street Journal.

Ells said that the E. coli outbreak has forced the company to review how its ingredients are being handled.

The college initially said that 30 students had fallen ill at the weekend, but the number quickly rose, ABC News reported. The fast-casual chain is reeling from an E. coli outbreak that in recent weeks has caused sales to plummet and forced the temporary closure of dozens of restaurants.

On Thursday, the Seattle agency closed a Chipotle location because of “repeated food safety violations”.

The Chipotle near Boston College was voluntarily closed by the company.

Norovirus is a highly contagious virus easily passed among those in close proximity and can spread through contaminated food, improper hygiene, and contact with contaminated surfaces.

In Minnesota, in August and September, more than 64 cases of salmonella were reported and linked to 22 Chipotle restaurants, according to published reports and lawsuits filed in the matter.

In an interview with Matt Lauer on “Today” Thursday, Ells apologized to those sickened and vowed to institute more stringent food safety procedures.

After multiple food illness outbreaks, Chipotle’s founder is promising new food safety practices.