'My father found her on the floor': Diner says sister fell ill and fainted after eating fruits at Seletar Mall's Haidilao outlet

A woman fainted and was rushed to the hospital for food poisoning, purportedly after she consumed fruits served at hot pot chain Haidilao's Seletar Mall branch on Oct 12.

Her older brother, surnamed Wang, told Shin Min Daily News that three other relatives who ate from the same fruit platter also experienced stomach aches and diarrhoea after the meal.

The 36-year-old explained that he and 11 family members had gathered for a birthday celebration at Haidilao, where only his father, uncle, young brother and younger sister consumed the fruit platter.

After they returned home, the four diners began experiencing diarrhoea, with Wang's sister being the worst-hit.

"She felt dizzy after going to the toilet," he recalled.

"Our father was resting in the room when he heard a shout and found her in a faint on the floor. He was shocked and immediately called an ambulance."

According to Wang, his sister was diagnosed with gastroenteritis at the A&E and administered IV fluids.

She was reportedly discharged that evening but reportedly continued to suffer from diarrhoea afterwards, fully recovering after three days.

Wang added that he had attempted to contact Haidilao several times but did not receive a response. He subsequently submitted feedback on the incident to the Singapore Food Agency (SFA).

A Haidilao spokesperson told Shin Min that they are in contact with the diners and will co-operate with investigations.

Wang later confirmed to Shin Min that the restaurant chain has apologised, promised to investigate the incident, and compensate his sister's medical expenses.

In response to AsiaOne's queries, SFA confirmed it had received feedback on the Oct 12 incident.

"Our inspection at Haidilao did not reveal any food safety lapses. All food handlers were observed to be practising good food safety practices such as wearing gloves when handling Ready-To-Eat cooked food," the authority said.

SFA said consumers should be aware of food safety risks, such as undercooked food or cross contamination, when having hotpot.

It highlighted that food safety is a joint responsibility, and food operators must play their part by adhering to good food safety practices.

"SFA will not hesitate to take enforcement action against errant food operators. Consumers should also play their part by adopting good food safety practices."

AsiaOne has reached out to Haidilao for comment.

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lim.kewei@asiaone.com