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Colorado’s two new In-N-Out sites face an outbreak of COVID-19 among employees, as the number of positive tests continued to rise this week.
No fewer than 145 employees at the Colorado Springs and Aurora In-N-Out sites have tested positive for COVID-19 since an initial outbreak last December, according to a report released Wednesday by the Department of Public Health and the Environment. of Colorado, the Denver Post reported.
The Colorado Springs site has counted 83 cases of COVID-19 since the outbreak began on December 6; Aurora has tested 62 positive since the outbreak began on Dec. 17 (An outbreak is defined as two or more positive cases linked to a location or event, according to Colorado state health officials.)
The outbreaks at the two In-N-Out sites are believed to be the largest among restaurants in the state since the start of the pandemic, according to the Gazette. Despite this, both restaurants remain open, as an outbreak does not require closure – however, local health departments can force a closure if necessary. (It should be noted that In-N-Out can be closed on purpose.)
The health services that oversee these two sites have not said that a forced closure is on the horizon, at the request of the Gazette. A county spokeswoman told the newspaper that there are no current recommendations to shut down its local In-N-Out, and that In-N-Out management is in “regular communication” with the. health department.
“Based on Public Health monitoring and investigation, In-N-Out adheres to frequent cleaning and disinfection protocols, in addition to performing screening examinations of employees, excluding sick employees. and to the staff cohort, ”Natalie Sosa, spokesperson for El Paso County, told The Gazette. “Temporary shutdown recommendations are given when transmission within the facility is identified and to allow for proper cleaning and disinfection.”
El Paso County said in a statement to the Colorado Springs Business Journal that no customer of the Colorado Springs site has been linked to the outbreak. It’s unclear if the same is true for the Aurora Outpost.
Denny Warnick, vice president of operations for In-N-Out, said the two In-N-Out sites in Colorado currently have “less than five confirmed active cases” and are seeing “substantial improvement” in number of cases, he said. Restaurant trade publication, Nation’s Restaurant News. Employees who had previously tested positive have since recovered, he said, and are “currently healthy and healthy”.
“We are working closely with our public health agencies to review and confirm that the proactive measures we are taking are appropriate and effective to protect our communities,” said Warnick in part. “This includes limiting the number of associates and clients inside, using staffing ‘cohorts’ and a quick response to identify and exclude from work anyone who has been in close contact with a person.” which has tested positive.
“We remain committed to doing our part to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” he continued. “The actions we will continue to take at our Colorado restaurants are guided by our commitment to protect the health and safety of our customers and associates.”
Two In-N-Out sites in Southern California have also experienced an outbreak of COVID-19 among its employees. The Palmdale and Sherman Oaks sites had seven and eight employees respectively tested positive for COVID-19, Nation’s Restaurant News reported.
Colorado has been thrilled with In-N-Out’s arrival since the announcement was first made in 2017; when the Colorado Springs and Aurora locations opened on November 20 of last year, customers waited up to 12 hours to get their hands on a Double-Double.
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