Norovirus Outbreak Tied To Illinois Pizzeria

WASHINGTON, IL — A pizzeria in central Illinois has been tied to a norovirus outbreak, according to health officials.

Monical’s Pizza, located in Washington, said in a Facebook post over the weekend that the business was aware of customers falling ill and would close while the Tazewell County Health Department investigated. A later update stated that Monical's planned to reopen Tuesday after the restaurant had cleaned, retrained staff on food handling and discarded prepared foods.

“Rest assured that we are meeting the guidelines established by local and state health departments,” the update said.

County health authorities on Wednesday disclosed three lab-confirmed norovirus cases that became symptomatic between Nov. 21 and Nov. 26 in connection with the eatery, although WCBU reported at least 155 people suffered gastrointestinal symptoms or body aches after consuming food from the restaurant. The health department determined that high-touch surfaces were the vehicle for the outbreak.