Norovirus suspected at Chipotle

Eighty Boston College students fell ill after eating at a Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurant this past weekend, and early test results point to the highly contagious norovirus as the culprit, public health investigators said on Tuesday.

Chipotle, already grappling with a multistate E. coli outbreak that has battered the burrito chain’s sales and stock price, has temporarily closed the Cleveland Circle restaurant where the Boston College students reported eating.

The students are being tested for E. coliandnorovirus,whichbothcancause severe vomitinganddiarrhea. Thosetest results are not expected for at least two days, a university spokesman said.

Chipotle on Tuesday said it would not shutter any other outlets in the Boston area.

“The pattern here looks like norovirus isolated to one restaurant,” Chipotle spokesman Chris Arnold told Reuters.

The chain has been under a microscope since Oct. 31, when it was first linked to an E. coli outbreak that has sickened 52 people in nine states.

That outbreak was the company’s third food safety incident since August. It has raised concerns about potential reputational damage to the fast-growing brand that has won a loyal following for its food made with fresh produce, meats raised without antibiotics and ingredients that are free of genetically modified organisms, or GMOs.