Year 12 students struck down with gastro after a dinner at Flemington Racecourse less than two weeks ahead of the Melbourne Cup
- An estimated 39 out of 455 attendees have become sick after a Year 12 dinner
- The mixture of students, teachers and parents ate at Flemington racecourse
- Early signs of the investigation do not suggest gasto was caused by the venue
Dozens of Year 12 students attending a diner at Melbourne’s Flemington Racecourse have been struck down with gastro.
The pupils from Footscray City College attended the celebratory dinner last Friday ahead of their end of year exams and the Melbourne Cup.
Sources from Victoria Racing Club told the Herald Sun results from on ongoing of investigation suggested a viral illness was to blame for the student’s sickness.
The Victorian department of health confirmed the incident and said while it cannot yet identify the cause it is currently conducting testing and the venue has been cleaned.
The dinner celebrating the end of Year 12 for the Footscray City College students resulted in 39 attendees falling sick ahead of final exams and the Melbourne Cup
‘The department is working closely with Melbourne City Council to investigate, including interviewing attendees to determine the exact type of illness,’ a spokesperson said.
The Melbourne City Council said it was still too early to determine the cause of the illness but early signs suggested the venue wasn’t to blame.
‘Testing is being conducted on food samples, environmental swabs and faecal samples. No pathogens have been found among the samples tested so far, however further testing is ongoing,’ a spokesperson said.
‘If you feel sick, we recommend seeking medical advice, drinking plenty of water and washing your hands thoroughly and regularly. We also recommend visiting your local GP and requesting a faecal sample be collected and tested for pathogens and viruses.’
As the Melbourne Cup gets under way in less than two weeks the department said it will be monitoring the
‘Council officers will attend Flemington Racecourse during Spring Racing Carnival as part of the City of Melbourne’s regular monitoring program,’ it said.
In a statement Victoria Racing Club said it and it’s caterer Peter Rowland were currently working with authorities on the matter.
The incident happened less than two weeks ahead of the Melbourne Cup however the venue has since been cleaned and granted approval to be operate as normal again
‘The relevant authorities were notified and extensive and rigorous cleaning of the food preparation, serving areas and venue facilities was undertaken as per City of Melbourne instructions for a viral infection,’ it said.
‘The venue has since been inspected by City of Melbourne which granted approval for the venue to continue to operate as normal.’
Footscray City College said it would not be commenting at this stage of the investigation