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More Than 80 People Sickened After Eating Oysters at L.A. Times Event

The illnesses could be linked to a reported outbreak of norovirus in oysters.

More than 80 people were sickened after eating raw oysters at an event revealing the Los Angeles Times’ 101 Best Restaurants in Los Angeles list, public health authorities in California said. “At this time, over 80 attendees that consumed the oysters have reported illness, a majority with gastrointestinal symptoms that include diarrhea, nausea, abdominal pain and vomiting,” the Los Angeles Department of Public Health said in a statement obtained by The New York Times. The Los Angeles Department of Public Health is investigating a possible outbreak of norovirus—the leading cause of food-related illnesses in the US, according to the CDC. On Wednesday, the FDA advised restaurants to avoid serving oysters from suppliers in British Columbia due to a reported norovirus outbreak there. The incident was first reported by L.A. TACO, a local food publication. A representative for the Los Angeles Times told the publication that the oysters were sourced from Fanny Bay, one of the suppliers the FDA identified in their notice. One guest who got sick told the outlet he paid over $600 for two VIP tickets to the event, which promised guests could try food from over 40 Los Angeles-area restaurants and “rub elbows with the acclaimed chefs.”