Restaurants take full precautions as flu season worsens

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - With the increasingly bad flu season in full swing, area restaurants are taking precautions.

Employees at Lew’s Grill and Bar said they were taking extra steps to keep both workers and diners healthy.

“Our staff is washing their hands twice as many times as what they normally mandate through the health department,” co-owner Andy Lewellen said. “We’re going through twice as many gloves. We’re also using hand sanitizer wipes on our tables and surfaces.”

They're wiping down the chairs more often as well. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment said the state is seeing a higher rate of flu than normal for this time of year. The agency said they typically see cases of the flu peak in February.

Last year, there were 1,300 deaths in Kansas caused directly or indirectly from the flu or pneumonia, which is often a side effect of the flu.