The investigation continues, but initial test results show turkey was the source of Salmonella that sickened employees at a pre-Thanksgiving dinner at a Georgia tire factor

At least five people had to be hospitalized and lab tests confirmed dozens were suffering from Salmonella infections after the Nov. 14-15 catered meals at the Toyo Tire production plant in White, GA. Angelo’s New York Style Pizza and Bistro of Cartersville, GA, catered the two-day event, which included turkey.

“Preliminary findings implicate catered turkeys as the cause of a recent Salmonella outbreak among employees attending an event at Toyo Tire,” according to Logan Boss, risk communicator for the Georgia Department of Health.

The Georgia Department of Public Health Northwest Health District continues the investigation to confirm the test results. Representatives of the department interviewed about 1,800 Toyo Tire employees after the department started getting reports of illnesses.

Angelo Nizzari, owner of the implicated restaurant, issued a statement in late November through his attorney John T. Mroczko. Nizzari said he was heartbroken about the incident and offered his sympathy to those sickened in the outbreak.

The restaurant closed temporarily for cleaning. Health department officials inspected it and Angelo’s reopened Nov. 22. Employees of the restaurant received “rigorous training in safe food handling from Bartow County Health Department environmental health specialists,” the department reported.