Number of Food Poisoning Victims in Sirao Reaches 133

The number of victims of food poisoning in Sitio Tawagan II, Barangay Sirao, an upland Cebu City village last Monday, reached 133 today, Wednesday.

Cebu City Health Department (CHD) officials said the victims aged one year old to 59 were being treated at the Guba Community Hospital.

The number is still expected to increase since a flower farm owner who conducted a community outreach activity Monday distributed 300 food packs.

Other victims went to the Cebu City Medical Center and other private hospitals in Cebu City.

The residents ate spaghetti and fried chicken during the outreach program organized by the owner of the Sirao flower farm, but later experienced severe stomach pains, vomiting and fever.

The residents started to arrive at the nearby Guba Community Hospital early Tuesday morning.

The patients were forced to share beds, considering that the Guba Community Hospital is only a 25-bed facility.

Flower farm owner Elena Chua visited the patients Wednesday and apologized to the victims.

She said the food did not come from their kitchen and was cooked by a family friend who owns a restaurant.

She said they gave out food in good faith, a way to thank the flower farmers and nearby residents for the good business.

Chua vowed to shoulder the medical expenses but Cebu City Medical Center hospital chief Gloria Duterte said they were instructed by the mayor not to bill the patients.

Duterte said they just asked Chua to provide several dextrose and antibiotics since they ran out of supplies. (PNA) LAP/EB/EDS