Theories abound, but one is fun: Mickey Mouse had hunger pangs and strayed from Disneyland to nearby Angel Stadium where he discreetly raided a forlorn concession stand in a nose-bleed section adjacent to the right-field foul pole.
That concession stand — high up in View Level Section 42 — was the only one out of about 160 at Angel Stadium to be flagged by Orange County health inspectors April 22 for “rodent infestation.”
Not a bad batting average, but with apologies to Mickey, no exceptions are allowed when it comes to rodent infestation and food.
The Angels have been on a road trip all week but a team spokesman said Tuesday that the stand has been cleaned and will be re-inspected ahead of a homestand that begins Friday against the New York Mets.
“After receiving guidance from the health department, we acted promptly with our concession partner to resolve the issues at the single stand and expect it to pass inspection and reopen in time for the upcoming homestand,” the Angels said in a statement.
The Orange County Register publishes a weekly list of restaurants and other food vendors ordered to close and allowed to reopen by county health inspectors. Eleven establishments were closed from April 16-23, nine for rodent or cockroach infestations, one for insufficient hot water and one for unapproved remodeling. Angel Stadium concessions were on the list.
The team spokesman said rodent activity was not found in any food preparation areas, that it occurred underneath a storage rack and next to a water heater.
The county health services inspection report said that for the stand to re-open, rodent activity must be eliminated and equipment surfaces, food containers, shelves and floors must be cleaned and sanitized. Also, crevices larger than a quarter-inch must be sealed “to prevent vermin harborage.”
The offending stand had most recently passed inspection in June. Rodent issues at Angel Stadium had ceased since a 2007 report in the Times that the stadium had been cited 118 times for vermin violations in the previous two years. Major citations were issued in 33 instances where rodents or other pests were detected where food was stored, prepared or served.
The Angels blamed the presence of vermin on the stadium’s open-air design and proximity to the Santa Ana River. They said that in 2005 heavy rains drove rats into the stadium and contributed to a high number of citations.
The Angels went to bat against the rats, announcing that cleaning crews would get to work an hour after each game instead of waiting until the next morning.
“The garbage had been sitting in the seating bowl area after games, and that problem is going to be eliminated as of tonight,” said Tim Mead, the Angels spokesman at the time.
By 2009, the team had eliminated the problem.
Until last week, that is.
“The Angels take great pride in delivering a high-quality fan experience at Angel Stadium,” the team said in the statement Tuesday, “including maintaining the cleanliness of our nearly 160 concession locations.”
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