SEATTLE -- Two customers of a Lake Stevens restaurant who were sickened in an E. coli outbreak last year have filed lawsuits against the business.

E. coli infected at least 23 customers at the Ixtapa Family Mexican Restaurant in October 2008, the Snohomish Health District said.

The law firm representing the customers, Marler Clark, said the plaintiffs, Sally Ring and Jean Jubie, suffered "severe illnesses requiring substantial medical treatment."

Four people were hospitalized for a brief time in the outbreak that closed the restaurant for a time.