Fifteen people, including two women and a child, were hospitalised with complaints of vomiting and dehydration after consuming packaged coconut water purchased from a particular factory in Adyaru of Mangaluru district, the district health department said on Thursday.
District Health Officer (DHO) Dr Thimaiah said that people who fell sick after consuming packaged coconut water on Wednesday evening were treated as inpatients and outpatients in government and private hospitals, including Highland and Father Muller Medical College and Hospital
He further said that three people, including two women and a child are being treated in a private hospital under extra observation, and those who suffered illness were recovering.
Following the incident, the medical, food, and civil supply departments sealed the factory that sold the packaged coconut water sachets and has sent 15 litres of coconut water of different-sized sachets for testing to a laboratory in Bengaluru to determine the cause of the illness of those infected.
“We also sent the stools of all the infected to the laboratory, and action will be initiated based on the report,” Dr Thimaiah said, adding that since all those treated in the hospitals were found to have consumed the packaged coconut water from a particular factory that also manufactures ice creams. “The primary report revealed there might be some fault in the packaged coconut water which was still dated,” the DHO said.
Those who suffered illness are residents of Adyaru, Kannuru, and Tumbe .
{{/usCountry}}Those who suffered illness are residents of Adyaru, Kannuru, and Tumbe .
{{/usCountry}}As humidity was higher in the coastal region, the cool drinks manufacturing sector does good business every summer. Since it is believed that the water of tender coconut water does not have any contamination, people prefer it more. However, unfortunately, the tragedy occurred with it, said Satish Shetty, who owns a coconut water packaging unit in Mangaluru.
“The stock that was recovered from the Adyaru unit was dated with an expiry date till August and September. Only those who consumed coconut water from the particular factory suffered illness, and no one had from other units,” Shetty added.
The incident created panic in Mangaluru and neighbouring Udupi districts with rumours about cholera, which prompted health minister Dinesh Gundurao to respond. “It is neither cholera nor any waterborne infection. People should not panic,” the minister said while urging people not to believe the rumours.
The factory that caused the illness of many has been cleaned, the entire stock has been seized, and the factory was closed until further order, the minister said, adding that the factory was following all the norms and the packaged boxes were dated with an expiry date till the second half of the year. “To know the real cause, samples of the packaged stuff from the factory and the stools of the infected have been sent to government laboratories, and reports are expected soon,” Gundurao said.
He said the health officers was been directed to personally visit those undergoing treatment at private hospitals and coordinate with them until the infected are discharged.