86 guests ill after 300-a-head-bash
31 July 2010, 15:17
By Janis Kinnear and Warda Meyer
It was a night of glitz and glamour for the Vista High matric class of 2010 at their matric ball - but hours later half the 86 guests, including six teachers, were struck down with suspected food poisoning.
The Bo-Kaap pupils' dance was held at the upmarket Cape Sun hotel in Strand Street last Friday where guests were served a R300-a-head buffet of chicken, beef, fish and other seafood, vegetables and desserts, including chocolate mousse.
Afterwards everyone taken ill complained of the same symptoms: chills, fever, back pain, vomiting, stomach cramps and diarrhoea.
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It was a night of glitz and glamour for the Vista High matric class of 2010 at their matric ball - but hours later half the 86 guests, including six teachers, were struck down with suspected food poisoning.
The Bo-Kaap pupils' dance was held at the upmarket Cape Sun hotel in Strand Street last Friday where guests were served a R300-a-head buffet of chicken, beef, fish and other seafood, vegetables and desserts, including chocolate mousse.
Afterwards everyone taken ill complained of the same symptoms: chills, fever, back pain, vomiting, stomach cramps and diarrhoea.
The hotel group has sympathised with the sick pupils and says it takes such reports very seriously. But the time lapse between the event and the alert from the school was too great for the hotel to establish whether any of its food was to blame.
It said at this stage there was no way of "unequivocally linking the event to alleged food poisoning".
Samples of food were kept for up to 72 hours after big events, just in case there were reports of food poisoning, but in this case the samples had since been destroyed.
Deputy school principal Ismail Esau said the school received 17 sick certificates from pupils and teachers this week and other parents called the school to say their children were ill.
"Other matrics were sent home on Monday because they were not well, and were having to go to the bathroom almost every minute."
Esau said he was concerned that more than half of the matrics missed school this week.
"This week only 20 of the 73 matriculants were in class, while four teachers were booked off. This incident disrupted teaching and learning for the week and matric exams are due to start in September."
Teacher Leonard Barnes said on the Saturday after the party, he could barely walk, and he was still ill on the Sunday. He went back to school on Friday after six days in bed.
Another teacher, Wendy Richards, said she had suffered from terrible stomach and back aches and could not get out of bed.
"We did not suspect that it could be the food at the ball, because it is a la-di-da place, but after realising that several other teachers, students and their partners from outside the school had also fallen ill, it all became clear."
Teacher Rachmat Sampson, who organised the ball, said she, too, was sick and only found out on Wednesday that others were also ill.
"This was not what we planned for the matrics. It was supposed to have been a special night but instead of sharing stories about the event afterwards, the majority spent the next few days in bed. Nobody wants to remember their matric ball like this."
She said when they contacted the hotel, staff said it could not have been caused by their food because it was all tested prior to being served.
On Thursday hotel staff said it was more likely that there could have been a virus at school.
Gaironesa Hendricks said her daughter, Aa-isha, 17, had been bedridden since Friday night and they could not afford a doctor.
Waseem Noordien, 17, from Bo-Kaap, also complained of being sick. His cousin Abashia Karriem, 15, accompanied him to the dance.
She said she ate potatoes, fish and chocolate mousse and became ill.
Priya Naidoo at Southern Sun Hotels said: "It is our strict policy to keep samples of the food served at public events for 72 hours, specifically to investigate any complaints of food contamination.
"We also use independent laboratories to test the samples."
- This article was originally published on page 1 of The Cape Argus on July 31, 2010
Durban
