Jul 9, 2008 11:51 pm US/Eastern
Dirty Playgrounds
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
Have you ever wondered what it's really like deep inside the play structures at fast food restaurants? Well, the CBS4 I-Team wanted to know whether McDonald's and Burger King are really doing a good job keeping them free of bacteria.
So, the I-Team's Laurie Stein went to a scientific laboratory and got a dozen sterile sponges and swabs. Then she went to six South Florida McDonald's and Burger Kings to collect samples so the lab can test for mold, staph, yeast,and other bacteria.
If the levels are too high,Pediatrician Dr.Philip Floyd says kids can get all sorts of nasty illnesses. As you can imagine, children often play in the structures and then eat without immediately washing their hands. Plus,they might eat discarded food they find buried deep within the play area.
Dr. Floyd says that children can develop,"anything from a bad gastrointestinal infestation with vomiting and diarrhea to something that would give you high fever or skin infections or high mold which can cause allergic children to react. Some children will also have allergic reactions to fungus seen on these toys."
At first, Laurie sent in 8-year-old Jaclyn to videotape the debris on the upper layers of a fast food playspace. The child could easily access places that a grown-up just couldn't reach. The child crawled out of the Burger King slide and exclaimed, "I found a napkin with a hair sticking out of it!"
Laurie wasn't able to wrestle her way into the top of the play structures, but she managed to climb about ten feet of the way up. After donning plastic gloves and gripping the sterilized sponges and swabs, Laurie obtained a dozen samples for the lab. She also noticed the occasional old chicken nugget, leftover french fries and band-aids.
And then there were the mosquitoes. Laurie's first reaction when she discovered a hoard of them, lying in wait? "Oh my gosh," she said. "They are alive! I see them moving!"
She departed the play structure, unscathed, and immediately told the manager that something was amiss.
He took a close look, then immediately asked someone else to take care of it.
At the McDonald's on Coral Way and 87th Avenue, Laurie noticed a darkened window and the mold count from that sample was incredibly high. At other restaurants, the mold count was literally off the charts. And at one restaurant, the CBS4 I-Team found lots of staph, which experts say can cause food poisoning.
Scientist Pete Kmieck says, in general, the samples were filthy, with all sorts of bacteria growing fast. He says, "these are all signs that there's no sanitation whatsoever in these types of environments. I think this is a filthy situation that needs to be addressed immediately."
So how often do these restaurants clean? Well, at a Burger King on 87th Avenue, workers say it depends on how dirty it gets. An employee says, " maybe if there's water up there or pee-pee, or something like that, then we'll send somebody up." At a McDonald's on Flagler and 102nd, it's every two months. And at another, it's every three. Although judging from what we saw, maybe it should be a bit more.
Scientist Kmieck says, "I think these playgrounds don't lend themselves to being cleaned. I think the children are in there at their own risk and this is a significant problem. Logistically, I don't see any access to these playgrounds to adequately clean them. Unless I'm misinformed, certainly we can't send the children in to do it. This is something that needs to be addressed and children rely on us to address it."
The corporate offices for Burger King said they have "… procedures for daily, weekly and monthly cleaning." McDonald's representatives said the bacteria levels we found are "commonly found … on household surfaces." They are "… not a cause for concern … bacteria is everywhere, you know."
McDonald's Statement:
"Cleanliness and sanitation standards at four Miami-area McDonald's PlayPlaces were called into question recently, following an investigation conducted by WFOR-TV. Upon learning about these concerns, we requested a copy of the lab reports from WFOR-TV, but despite multiple requests, they were never shared with us. Based on the limited information shared with us by WFOR-TV, we had experts analyze the alleged findings. We caution anyone from jumping to conclusions. To put the alleged results into perspective, the bacteria levels reported in WFOR-TV's findings are commonly found at these levels or higher on workplace and household surfaces, and even on human hands. It is also important to note that results may be affected by sampling procedures, sample handling and countless other factors. At McDonald's, we frequently inspect PlayPlace surfaces to check for food spills, trash, and overall cleanliness. We thoroughly clean all PlayPlace equipment and surfaces every day.
We will continue to work closely with our local health department partners to ensure the continued operation of clean, safe restaurants and PlayPlaces."
Robert Garcia
Vice President, Quality Service and Cleanliness, McDonald's Florida Region
Burger King Statement:
The playgrounds at BURGER KING® restaurants (company or franchised) must be cleaned and maintained in accordance with the cleaning standards in our Operations Manual. These standards include procedures for daily, weekly and monthly cleaning of playground equipment, pads and foams. On a quarterly basis, the restaurants playgrounds are also required to be cleaned by a professional cleaning service. Burger King representatives and our third party inspectors visit both company and franchised restaurants regularly. During these site visits, they check for cleanliness of the children's play areas. Denise Wilson
Spokesperson, Burger King
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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