Sixty-eight students from St. Thomas Aquinas Igumori Secondary School in Mbeere South, Embu County, have been hospitalised after consuming suspected contaminated cow head meat.
The affected students, all in Form Four, developed severe stomach pains and diarrhoea, prompting an urgent medical response.
The alarming incident unfolded after the students had their meals, with some reportedly complaining of abdominal pain.
The shool principal Paul Mwaniki who spoke to the press, confirmed that only Form Four students were affected, while others who ate regular meat showed no symptoms of food poisoning.
“Today in the morning an incident was reported about students complaining of stomachache and some diarrhoeic. We slaughtered a bull on Wednesday morning, we ate it, the whole school together with the staff and then the head was boiled at night and we took it with the candidates yesterday,” he explained.
“As of yesterday, there were no complaints from those who took the red meat and the intestines on Wednesday but around 5am, I was told that some 11 students were complaining of stomach ache. I rushed them to the nearest hospital but later the number rose to more than 40 and it was overwhelming.”
Despite the distressing situation, Mwaniki assured parents and the school community that there was no cause for panic, as medics had swiftly intervened.
“The total was 68 students. They were treated and three of them were referred to Embu General Hospital for further treatment they are responding well to treatment and are stable,” he said.
“All the students at the private hospital have been discharged and are on the way to school but 10 students have been retained at Ketioe Health Centre for further observations.”
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