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A city with just under 60,000 residents, Gardena has the highest percentage of Japanese-Americans in the United States. The city has the largest number of Japanese owned companies found anywhere in the country.
During the past decade, tucked on Western Avenue is an area that has become known as Little Belize, because of restaurants located along that corridor. Little Belize in Gardena is home to Belizean restaurants that are described by the LA Times as:
On (the tables of these restaurants) you’ll encounter the food of two distinct Belizean cultures: Maya and Kriol. Most of L.A.’s Belizean restaurants draw from both the Yucatan’s Maya heritage and the British and West African mix known as Kriol.
Overall, restaurants in Gardena are generally healthy and safe. With that said, from time to time, a health or safety issue can arise, even when it comes to one of the most highly regarded eateries in Gardena. One of the more significant types of violations a restaurant can obtain is one associated with rats and rat droppings.
Health Violations at Gardena Bistros, Diners, and Restaurants
Gardena restaurants of all types are subject to recurring inspections by the county health department. One of the most significant major violations a restaurant can have is the presence of rats and rat droppings at an establishment. The presence of rat droppings can cause the health department to close an eatery until a situation involving rats is rectified and a restaurant is re-inspected. If a restaurant continues to fail inspections because of rat droppings, an eatery runs the risk of being permanently shuttered by the health department.
Identifying Health Issues at Gardena Restaurants
The Los Angeles Public Health Department provides residents of Gardena with a search tool that can be used to identify the inspection results of local eateries. You can identify those specific restaurants that have health inspection issues and have received violations from the health department.
You can access this resource by clicking on these links: Health Department Violation Search Portal. Once on the page, you need only to enter the name of the community – Gardena – and you will receive a listing of inspection results, including the nature of violations.
Rats in Your Home or Business
There are real reasons why rats in a restaurant are dangerous. One of the key dangers stems from rat droppings. Rat droppings can harbor dangerous viruses that can cause serious and even fatal diseases in human beings.
The presence of rats in residential property can prove to be very dangerous for the same reasons they threaten the workers and patrons of eateries.
Hantavirus is an example of one of the pathogens that can be found in rat droppings. A person infected with the hantavirus can end up seriously ill. Hantavirus infection can even prove fatal in some cases.
One alarming issue associated with rat droppings containing the hantavirus is what happens when they dry out. Dried rat droppings readily crumble. When that happens, dust and any virus contained in dried rat droppings spray into the air. The virus-laden dust can end up being inhaled, resulting in a person facing infection and the disease that accompanies it.
Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome
Infection by the hantavirus can result in what is known as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome results in an infected person experiencing a situation in which his or her lungs begin to fill with blood and other bodily fluids.
Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome is a highly serious condition. 38 percent of the individuals that end up suffering from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome will die.
Testing for Infection after Exposure to Rat Droppings
If you have been exposed to rat droppings, you need to schedule an appointment with your personal care physician immediately. Your doctor can arrange for testing to determine if you are infected with a virus that can be carried in rat droppings. If you are infected, the best way to reduce the results of such an infection is to begin prompt treatment.
If you do not have a personal care physician available, you can schedule an appointment at one of the LA County Public Health Department clinics located throughout the county. Although there isn’t a clinic in Gardena, there are several in close proximity to the city. You can obtain more information about the clinics at:
Community Health Services
Los Angeles County
Department of Public Health
241 North Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, California 90012
(213) 240-8251
Rat Droppings and Biohazard Cleanup
If a rat droppings condition exists in a place of business or residence, the safest course to take is to engage the services of a biohazard cleanup specialist. By engaging professionals to deal with rat droppings cleanup, you ensure a safe resolution of the problem. In addition, you ensure that any viruses associated with rat droppings are permanently eradicated.
Photo Courtesy of Inge Habex.
