Several children got sick after attending a birthday party at a children's gym in Queens last week, health officials say.
The Health Department says a possible gastrointestinal illness outbreak may be to blame after children began experiencing vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramps and fever following a party at Kids 'N Shape in Howard Beach on Jan. 12.
Parent Liz Geraghty told NBC 4 New York her 7-year-old son was among the nearly 30 children who got sick after attending the party. Her son's pediatrician has not yet made a diagnosis and was awaiting test results.
Health officials have not confirmed the exact number of children who fell ill.
Paul Guarneri, owner of the gym, said in a statement that the gym was aware children got sick after attending the party and the company brought in a cleaner to disinfect the facility.
"Out of an abundance of caution, we proactively shut down our business for several days and hired an industrial cleaning service to thoroughly clean and disinfect our entire facility," Guarneri said.
Guarneri said he followed up with the Health Department, which determined the business took appropriate action and cleared it to reopen.
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"Nothing is more important to us than the health and safety of the children who attend Kids 'N Shape, which is why we took this incident so seriously," he said.
A spokesman for the Health Department said it was working closely with the facility and the families to try and determine the source of illness.
