ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla – A St. Augustine Dairy Queen was forced to shut down for a night after inspectors found flies and cockroaches near food in the kitchen.
Inspectors found the violations at the Dairy Queen on San Marco Avenue at 3 p.m. March 3. The restaurant reopened at 11 a.m. the following day.
The inspector wrote that she saw both dead and living cockroaches and flies throughout the store. There were three living cockroaches found on the floor behind and under the frontline ice cream machine. The dead cockroaches, which are only a basic violation, were found in the same area. They're less concerning to the state because dead bugs can't track bacteria or cause a current health problem.
The inspector wrote the dead bugs were picked up by the manager and corrected on site.
There were also a large number of living flies in the kitchen, according to the report. They were found by the ice cream machine and near the drink concentrate area in the back of the restaurant and behind the walk-in cooler.
On the following day, the inspector came back and found zero high priority or intermediate violations. The Dairy Queen was able to reopen after passing the inspection.