Fast Food Restaurant Temporarily Closed After DOH Inspection

A local fast food restaurant remained closed Wednesday following an inspection to correct food code violations, the Health Department said Wednesday.

Health Commissioner Julia Sheen said that an initial inspection was completed of McDonald’s in Orange Grove late Monday after several complaints to the Department’s Environmental Health Division. The restaurant was ordered closed after a Health Enforcement officer determined that the business was in violation of provisions referenced under Title 19, Chapter 25, of the V.I. Code.

“Once an establishment is closed, a follow-up inspection is agreed upon with the Department and the establishment is allowed to reopen once compliance is met,” Sheen said.

That follow-up inspection was conducted Wednesday but the restaurant did not meet compliance and remained closed. A third inspection has been scheduled and the restaurant can possibly reopen as early as Thursday, Sheen said.

Environmental Health Division staff routinely inspects restaurants as part of the Department’s mission to protect the public’s health. Sheen said that depending on the severity of the violations, businesses can be cited or shut down for violations that can range from a lack of refrigeration for frozen goods and unsanitary conditions to employees working without a food worker’s permit, which is granted by the Department of Health.

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