GONZALES - Several employees at a fast food restaurant in Ascension Parish say they are dealing with cleanliness issues at their store. After receiving an unsatisfactory response from corporate, they reached out to 2 On Your Side.

Lisa Bowlin is a shift manager at the Wendy's near the Tanger Outlet Mall just off I-10. She was transferred to that location about five months ago. Heather Messer is also a shift manager at the same location and has been there for four months. The two gave a tour to Brittany Weiss on Wednesday morning and pointed out the issues that they've been trying to get addressed within their store.

"I can smell the mold," said Bowlin.

While walking through the Wendy's kitchen, Bowlin pointed to several locations where mold is growing and can't be cleaned with bleach. 

"It's just a complete wreck," said Messer.

A recent storm was the final straw for the employees, who worked while water was raining down from the ceiling. It's soaked ceiling tiles, saturated overhead lighting, pooled on the floor, dropped through the security cameras, and onto their computers. 

"We get rained on; in the office, we have to keep garbage bags over our stuff because when it rains, everything gets soaking wet," said Bowlin.

Last week, a wall fell from behind the drink station. The shift managers say the ongoing water issue has created safety issues in the walk-in cooler, where mold is also forming.

"It is keeping us all sick, but we still have to come to work," said Bowlin.

Messer adds she is constantly worried about the quality of the food. 

The Louisiana Department of Health has conducted inspections previously, as recently as November 2025. All violations during that visit have been addressed.

HAZA Foods, which owns and operates this Wendy's location, did not return a request for comment by the time this story aired.