Camden Rush’s restaurant worker had coronavirus; diners warned of potential exposure
A Camden fast food restaurant worker has tested positive for coronavirus and the restaurant is telling diners who ate there during a nearly two week stretch in March that they could have been exposed.
A letter from the Rush’s fast food chain says the employee who worked at the Dekalb Street eatery may have been exposed March 2, but did not know it until March 14.
The employee learned Tuesday he was positive for coronavirus, according to a letter from Rush’s vice president Bill Rademacher. The employee has not worked there since March 14.
Rademacher’s letter, which he posted Tuesday on a Camden community Facebook page, says people who visited the restaurant from March 3 to March 14 “could have been exposed.’’
The letter said it was written so people could protect themselves and their families. Fast food restaurants can draw hundreds of diners each week, but it was not known Wednesday how many might have visited the Camden Rush’s during the period of concern.
Rush’s has temporarily closed the store for “deep cleaning,” and employees have been advised to quarantine themselves in their homes. They will be paid for two weeks for their time away from the restaurant, the letter said.
In an interview with The State, Rademacher said people need to be extra careful because Camden has had trouble with coronavirus. The small, historic town about 35 miles northeast of Columbia leads the state in coronavirus cases.
“We are all very concerned about our own safety, the safety of our community, our neighbors, our customers,’’ Rademacher said Wednesday.
“We are trying to act with an abundance of caution.’’
Rademacher said the employee who tested positive for coronavirus apparently was exposed at a family gathering, instead of in the restaurant.
His letter tells employees to let the company know if they were exposed to anyone with coronavirus and if the workers have virus symptoms. It says if someone has coronavirus, or COVID 19, they should seek medical attention.
A spokeswoman for the state Department of Health and Environmental Control said the agency does not recommend closing a restaurant if an employee has coronavirus and it does not recommend testing anyone who doesn’t show signs of the illness.
The primary potential exposure in a restaurant is from people who have the disease, not from food, the department said. That threat, however, could include a restaurant worker who has coronavirus and who handles cooked food, according to DHEC.
Coronavirus can cause extreme fatigue and shortness of breath that can prove fatal in vulnerable people, such as the elderly and those with pre-existing medical conditions. Many others who get the illness recover.
“COVID-19 is not a food-borne illness; it is spread by droplets coughed or sneezed by a person with the illness to those in close contact for an extended period of time,’’ the agency’s Laura Renwick said in an email. “If an employee were to test positive, DHEC would not recommend restaurant closure nor testing of asymptomatic patrons of the restaurant.’’
The email said people with symptoms “consistent with COVID-19’’ should contact their doctors or be screened through hospitals that provide Telehealth options.
As of Tuesday, Kershaw County had more coronavirus cases than any other county in South Carolina, with 22. Statewide, there were 47 cases, according to DHEC statistics released Tuesday. The statewide total was updated Wednesday to 60 cases in 14 counties, including three more in Kershaw County, DHEC said.
Camden, the county seat of Kershaw County, has been identified by DHEC as an area where the virus is spreading. Cases found in Lancaster County, nearby, are believed to be connected to the Camden coronavirus outbreak.
One Camden resident who is recovering from coronavirus developed the disease after visiting with a friend, who later was found to have the virus, in a local restaurant Feb. 28, she said earlier this week. She did not name the restaurant, but her exposure would have occurred before the Rush’s issue arose.
Rush’s is an iconic business in the Columbia area. Locally owned, the fast food chain has been in operation for decades. The small chain of nine restaurants serves hamburgers, chicken and other fast food.
“We have legacy employees, grandchildren who work for us whose grandparents worked for us,’’ Rademacher said. “We are not going to take this anything other than very seriously.’’
This story was originally published March 18, 2020 at 1:34 PM.
