Food poisoning leaves 3 dead, 65 warded

Food poisoning leaves 3 dead, 65 warded

Vomiting and Diarrhoea: They had attended wedding feast on Saturday.

ALOR STAR: NURSHAZANA Mohd Rashid, 24, was excited and could not wait for her favourite cousin's wedding in Kampung Huma, Tanjung Dawai, Sungai Petani.

The International Islamic University Malaysia Arabic language student, who was awaiting her convocation, had gone to her grandfather's house two days before the wedding was held on Saturday.

The third child from seven siblings was close to her cousin, identified only as Nina, in her 20s.

Cousin Hairul Azhar Harun, 33, said: "She was excited and had gone there two days before the wedding to help the bride's family." However, the wedding turned tragic when Nurshazana and her siblings, aged 8 and 10, and their mother came down with food poisoning. They started vomiting and had acute diarrhoea that evening. Nurshazana suffered the most. "She was very weak and unable to move. The family took her to a clinic, but she passed out at noon.

"They rushed her to Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital in Sungai Petani but she was pronounced dead upon arrival at 12.45pm," Hairul said at Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital mortuary yesterday.

Nurshazana was one of three guests at the wedding feast, who died from food poisoning yesterday.

The other two victims were 11-year-old Mohammad Norraahmad Yusof, 11, from Kampung Singkir Laut, Yan, and Ibrahim Mohamad, 62. Norraahmad's mother, Che Norma Khalid, 45, said he had gone to the wedding with his father, Yusof Arifin, 50.

"They came down with diarrhoea later that evening and my son's condition became worse this (yesterday) morning. We rushed him to Yan Hospital after he passed out at home. He was pronounced dead at 1pm."

Ibrahim, who was the wedding host's neighbour, was the third casualty. He died at Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital in Sungai Petani at 6.30pm yesterday after being warded for the same symptoms.

His son, Zulkifli, 31, said Ibrahim was warded at Yan Hospital on Sunday and was transferred to Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital at 2pm yesterday when his condition deteriorated.

"My father told us that he had eaten a chicken dish during the wedding feast."

Thirty-five other victims are warded in Sungai Petani, with two of them in critical condition while at least 30 are warded at Yan Hospital, including Nurshazana's mother. Additional reporting by Zahratulhayat Mat Arif

 

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