Health officials: Downtown hotel not the source of mystery illness

Thursday, March 4, 2004 | 9:42 a.m.

The California hotel in downtown Las Vegas and a charter airplane are not believed to be the source of a stomach flu-like illness that has sickened more than 100 guests of the hotel since Dec. 3, Clark County Health District officials said Wednesday.

Daniel Maxson, an environmental health supervisor with the Health District, said they inspected the restaurants and other eateries in the California and found nothing in them, or throughout the rest of the hotel, that would explain why the illness struck a high number of California guests.

Maxson said that in fact all of the restaurants in the hotel received the best rating they could from the district.

Most of the affected guests were from Hawaii, and Maxson said district staff also inspected a charter plane used to bring some guests from the islands to Las Vegas.

"There was no association specifically with the airplane either," Maxson said. "We really don't know how it's happening."

But even though the source of the illness remains a mystery, the hotel is taking extra steps to prevent any further spread of the illness.

Rob Stillwell, spokesman for California owner Boyd Gaming Corp., said employees have been wiping down slot machines, door handles, elevator buttons and other surfaces. Employees also are washing their hands regularly, he said.

Maxson said the best defense is to wash one's hands often, especially before eating and after using the bathroom.

Stillwell said one bit of proof the illness is not spreading through the hotel is that hotel employees are not calling in sick more than is normal.

Maxson said those struck by the illness are experiencing symptoms similar to the stomach flu, and the symptoms last about 24 hours.