Feeding program sends 111 Muntinlupa folk to hospital

More than 100 residents of Muntinlupa City ended up in the hospital on Saturday afternoon when they experienced symptoms of food poisoning after a feeding program conducted by a local private school.

Of the 111 people who sought treatment at Ospital ng Muntinlupa, only one was still in the hospital for tests as of Sunday morning.

According to a police report, De La Salle Santiago Zobel School (DLSZ) conducted its “Goodbye Gutom” feeding program around 8:30 a.m. on Saturday in the NHA Southville 3 housing project, part of the National Bilibid Prison reservation compound, at Barangay Poblacion, Muntinlupa City.

Around 220 to 250 residents were served breakfast consisting of sauteed ground pork, rice, boiled eggs, bananas and bottled water.

Food poisoning symptoms

In the afternoon, however, some of them experienced symptoms of food poisoning, including stomach pains, nausea, vomiting and loose bowel movement.

They were taken to the hospital where they underwent tests and received rehydration therapy before being discharged.

The City Health Office said it was conducting laboratory tests on the samples of food distributed during the feeding program to confirm if these caused the symptoms.

Residents of NHA-Southville have been regular beneficiaries of DLSZ’s feeding program for the past four years and this was the first time they complained of food poisoning.

In a statement, the school administration “expressed its sincere apologies and regret” over the “unfortunate incident.”

“Although the alleged food poisoning and the cause for it [have] yet to be ascertained, DLSZ is exhausting all efforts to assist the affected families,” it said.

School monitoring victims

The school added that it would continue monitoring the recovering residents and extend “all possible means to help them.”

It also suspended the Goodbye Gutom program while authorities were conducting separate investigations of the incident, adding that it “[would] put in place appropriate measures to avoid a similar occurrence in the future.”