Food poisoning kills 29 children (in Philipines)

[NewHampshireDem]

CNN) -- Nearly 30 elementary school children in the Philippines have died after eating fried cassava balls obtained from a vendor, a spokesman for the local mayor told CNN.

Fourteen children died Wednesday before reaching hospitals and 13 died upon arrival, the spokesman for Mabini Mayor Eutiquio Bernales said.

Two more children also have died, but it was not clear when. Thirty-five more are in critical condition.

The victims suffered severe stomach pain, then vomiting and diarrhea after eating the snack during morning recess, The Associated Press reported.


<more>
http://us.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/03/09/mass.poisoning/index.html

[emad]

1. Many Filipino children poisoned

BBC

At least 25 young children have died after being poisoned at a school in the southern Philippine island province of Bohol, local officials said.

The children, from the town of Mabini, apparently became ill after eating a mid-morning snack of cassava roots from a vendor outside the school.

More than 60 other children have been taken to hospital.

Cassava root, a widely-grown tropical crop, can cause cyanide poisoning if not prepared properly.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4333231.stm

[AFSCME girl]

2. Oh, this is awful!

:cry: Poor babies..

[ET Awful]

3. That's terrible :(

:cry:

I wonder how this happened. Was the lady that cooked them (who also died) just inexperienced or unknowledgeable, or was there some malicious intent?

The poor families :(

[Bridget Burke]

4. Cassava needs special handling to be edible....

(From the linked article.)

"Cassava is a starchy, tuberous root that is a low-cost source of carbohydrates in humid, tropical areas; it is also the source of tapioca.

"Cassava contains amino acid-derived cyanogenic glucosides -- some more than others -- and must be thoroughly cooked to remove toxic levels.

"Eaten raw, the human digestive system will convert part of it into cyanide. Two cassava roots contain enough to be fatal."

I never did like tapioca pudding...

[diamond14]

5. it could also be the OIL used in frying food....might have used some

"substitute" oil, not the same as the oil used for foods (corn oil, safflower oil, animal fat like crisco...used in mcDonald's, burger king, etc.)....


happens a LOT in very POOR countries.....might have used OIL, as in car/motorcycle/machinery OILS....a few years back, children were killed in Russia because they had no table salt, and substituted a different 'salt'...