Probe launched into food poisoning of students in Turkey’s southeast

DİYARBAKIR

An investigation has been launched into the food poisoning of students in the Kocaköy district of the southeastern province of Diyarbakır.

A total of 33 students were hospitalized over food poisoning on Sept. 26, prompting authorities to report the case.

Students in the Kocaköy Middle School started to suffer from high fever, diarrhea and nausea after drinking lentil soup and eating chicken, rice, grapes and tangerines for lunch.

The students were then taken to the Kocaköy State Hospital by their parents and six of them were referred to the Diyarbakır Children’s Hospital upon their family’s demands.

A total of 27 students were discharged after receiving treatment in Kocaköy.

Speaking about the incident, Kocaköy District Governor Yusuf Turhan said an administrative and legal investigation was launched into the incident.

“A total of 1,916 of our students had the lunch that was distributed in the schools in the Kocaköy district. One of the students from Kocaköy Middle School went to the Kocaköy State Hospital after suffering from nausea and vomiting at around 5:20 p.m.,” Turhan said on Sept. 27, adding that the conditions of the students were being followed.

“As of 10:30 p.m., no students were left in the hospitals. All the necessary administrative and legal investigations were launched,” he said.

The district office’s statement, meanwhile, refuted claims in several media organs that the number of students hospitalized was 200.