Two days after thirty Grade 11 senior high school students of the San Roque National High School in Alburquerque fell ill after an apparent outbreak initially reported as “acute food poisoning”, an investigation is now underway by the Provincial Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit (PESU) of the Provincial Health Office.

Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Reymoses Cabagnot told DYRD Balita that PESU will gather critical first hand account from the students, school officials and parents on specific onset times and symptoms to determine the exact cause of the unfortunate incident.

The PESU will also conduct an on site inspection of the place where the students prepared and ate their lunch of fish ceviche (kinilaw na isda), grilled pork, chicken, noodles and sesame rice cakes (butsi).

The occasion was an acquaintance party in the school premises where the food preparation reportedly took place.

According to school principal Ambrosio Fuerzas, the students started to feel sick and experience abdominal pain in the evening and rushed to the Governor Celestino Gallares Memorial Hospital (GCGMH).

Sixteen of the more than thirty students who were examined in the hospital and opted to be admitted are still confined and are slowly recovering from their illness.

Typically symptoms of food poisoning are abdominal cramps, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and headaches, according to medical sources.

Cabagnot reminded the public to observe strict standards of food preparation to avoid incidents of food poisoning. (Chito M. Visarra and Rey Tutas)