Bad ‘pancit Malabon’ downs 44 in Ligao City

LIGAO CITY—Ashley Aganoy, 8, came home on Monday afternoon from school with a plate of “pancit Malabon” laid out on the table, a take-home food from a birthday party her mother had gone to.

It did not take long after eating the noodles for the girl to begin to feel severe stomach cramps. She became nauseous and started vomiting, so her mother rushed her to the city’s government hospital.

Aganoy, of Barangay Guilid, was one of 44 people, ages ranging from 1 to 88 years, who fell ill after eating the noodles bought from AC Take Out, a food store in Barangay Calsada, health officials said.

Most of them ate the spoiled food during the party or bought it from the same store, said Dr. Nathaniel Rempillo, provincial health officer. “All of the patients are safe but need proper medication for their fast recovery,” he said.

“The food tasted normal and had no foul odor. But several hours after we ate, I began to feel different,” said Alvin Barcenal, 20, of Barangay Tuburan. He and his sister Shiena, 21; Aganoy and most of the victims were brought to Josefina Belmonte Memorial District Hospital shortly before midnight, while four were taken to Garcia Hospital.

Even the mother of the young birthday celebrator, Lalaine Joy Sacabon, was not spared from the food poisoning and was hospitalized.

Ada Repomanta, 37, of Barangay Sabang, Oas town, said she did not know that the small serving of noodles she fed her baby could send the child to the hospital. The food was given to her by a friend who bought it from the store on Monday.

According to city health officer Dr. Wynns Samar, the store has two registered workers—the owner and a helper—who both carry health cards. It was legally operating and had a sanitary permit, he said.

The city government ordered the store’s temporary closure.

Samar said the cause of food poisoning was still being determined. Results of a laboratory examination at the Department of Health regional office in Legazpi City were still being awaited. With a report from Mar S. Arguelles, Inquirer Southern Luzon