JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Creepy crawlers in the kitchen are the blame for at least temporary restaurant closures this month.

After state inspectors found 50 dead roaches in a cooler used to store bread on Oct. 15, Cool Moose Coffee on Park Street had to cool it for one day. One employee was also caught handling both dirty and clean utensils without washing his hands.

The Department of Professional Regulation found nine critical and 3 non-critical violations during an Oct. 15 visit. In a follow-up the next day, no violations were found and the Cool Moose was back in business.

Spanky's Pizza House 2 on U.S. Highway 1 in St. Augustine was shut down for two days this month.

During a Oct. 12 visit, inspectors found dozens of dead and live roaches in the kitchen, the ice bins were dirty and so were the containers used to store food -- resulting in six critical violations and six non-critical.

The next day, inspectors came back and the bugs were gone, but the dirt remained. It took one more day for them to clean up their act and they were allowed to reopen.

The food court inside the Norwood Plaza flea market had a rat and roach problem. On Oct. 15, inspectors cited 12 critical violations and five non-critical. Inspectors found 200 rat droppings in the place, along with roaches in the trash can and one in an open microwave. The inspection also noted grease and dust in the kitchen.

The next day, no critical violations were found and the food court was allowed to reopen.

State inspectors make surprise visits each year to every licensed restaurant and follow up where significant problems are found.

Channel 4's Melanie Lawson reviews the DPR's inspection reports and does regular reports on the

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