3 old age home inmates die of food poisoning in Tenkasi

MADURAI: Three inmates of an old age home in Tenkasi died of suspected food poisoning, and eight other victims are undergoing treatment in the hospital.

Among 58 inmates in the care home, which is functional under the guidance of Social Welfare Department, at Sundarapandiapuram in Tenkasi, eleven of them complained of vomiting and diarrhoea after consuming food and got hospitalised.

Superintendent of Tenkasi Government Hospital R Jeslin said that while T Sankara Ganesh (48) from Kamatchi Amman Kovil Street, Sengottai, who got admitted on Tuesday (June 10) died on Wednesday evening, the other two victims, including Murugammal (55), who was admitted on Wednesday night, from Chockampatti and Ambiga (40), died on Thursday morning.

Earlier, one victim got hospitalised on June 10 and four others on June 11 and six others on June 12, Dr. Jeslin said.

Tenkasi Deputy Director of Health Services, V Govindan after the inquiry said the victims consumed non-vegetarian food on Sunday in the care home and officials from the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine collected vomitus and loose stool samples and sent to lab to identify the cause of vomiting and diarrhea.

Moreover, the Food Safety Department also lifted food samples, raw and uncooked food samples for testing. Further, he said apart from those hospitalized, the other inmates of the home were also screened as a precautionary measure.

Z Tajunisha, District Social Welfare Officer (in-charge) said not all those who consumed rice with mutton gravy suffered vomiting and diarrhea and therefore it could not be treated as a case of food poisoning. Among those dead, one victim was mentally ill and the other victim was epileptic. Based on sample reports, the exact cause of deaths would be known.

Based on a complaint by Tenkasi Revenue Inspector, SV Karai police have filed a case under Section-194 of BNSS (unnatural death).