Oldbury's Wing Wah chinese buffet restuarant will have to pay out £19,610 after 46 people went down with food poisoning.

Kwai Lun Chiu, a director of the Wing Wah in Causeway Green Road was also given a 12 month Community Order and ordered to carry out 100 hours Community Punishment.

The major outbreak of salmonella poisoning was caused by the use of raw eggs in a dessert, Wolverhampton Crown Court was told, and it affected customers ranging from a 22 month old baby boy to an 80 year old man who had to spend 12 days in hospital.

Mr Jonathan Challinor prosecuting told Wolverhampton Crown Court the outbreak left the victims with symptoms that were highly unpleasant and, in some cases, extremely severe.

He said a total of 6 customers had to be hospitalised after eating tiramisu with all victims suffering from vomiting, headaches, fever, stomach cramps and general weakness.

Western Star (Midlands) Ltd, the parent company of Ethel Street, Birmingham which has since ceased trading admitted selling food unfit for human consumption and three hygiene offences.They were fined £10,000 with £9,610 costs.

Chiu of The Constables, Oldbury admitted the same four offences in what was described by Recorder Richard Benson QC as an isolated incident for a firm with an unblemished record.

The court was told by Mr Alexander Cameron defending the restuarant took rapid action to clean the premises after the outbreak and they reopened just three days later with a clean bill of health.

He said claims for compensation were being dealt with by the restuarant's insurers and so far 7 claims had been settled in the sum of £45,000.

Mr Cameron made a full apology on behalf of the restuarant to all the customers affected by the food poisoning as he maintained the outbreak had been caused by salmonella on the top shelf of the dessert refrigeration unit.

"It is not a cse where risk was taken for financial gain," said Mr. Cameron who told the court the restuarant, in the course of an average week, served 2,500 customers and it had been given a good hygiene award shortly before the incident.

The restuarant had been run under the direction of Chiu for about three years and there had been no other problems regarding cleanliness and, after the outbreak, they had carried out an immediate deep clean to resolve all the problems.

Mr Challinor said customers at the restuarant, now in new ownership, went down with salmonella poisoning and they all fell ill over a period of around 9 days.

Samples were taken from 34 of the victims and they identified the salmonella bug as the culprit and an investigation revealed the source of the outbreak was the use of raw eggs.

The symptoms persisted for a number of days with a woman described as "fit and sprightly" having to spend 5 days in hospital while a couple who flew off on holiday after eating at the Wing Wah had to be treated in a Spanish hospital.

The effects of the outbreak caused enormous economic problems with a total of 154 working days being lost by the victims with one man off work for 5 weeks and losing a stone in weight.

The prosecution say the outbreak was "eminently preventable" added Mr Challinor who said Chiu was in a position of responsibility and he knew from his training in the catering trade the risks posed by the use of raw eggs.

After the outbreak, the court heard, the firm made things difficult for investigators and they had "manipulated their finances in the aftermath of the incident."

The Recorder was told the only assets in the hands of the company after it had ceased trading was a tax repayment and he ruled that a balance of £19,.610 should be paid in full for the fines and costs.

"People were unnecessarily and avoidably ill," he ruled as he concluded, "I regard this as an isolated lapse in a hitherto unblemished record."