50 People Including Children Fall Ill After Consuming Food From Container With Dead Snake

At least 50 people, mostly children and women, fell ill after eating food from a container that had dead snake in it. The incident took place during a community feast organised by a self-help group in the Indian state of Odisha on Thursday.

According to local reports, at least 30 families were having their meal at a temple when most of them started vomiting and complained of uneasiness. They were immediately rushed to a nearby hospital.

Confirming the incident, a medical officer said, “They showed signs of food poisoning. However, many of them were discharged after administration of intravenous fluid.”

Speaking about the condition of the patients, a doctor said, "The patients were treated for suspected food poisoning and administered intravenous fluid. All those admitted in the hospital responded well to the treatment and are being discharged from the hospital in a phased manner.”

While washing the utensils after the feast was over, the locals came across a dead snake that was one foot long.

“We were shocked when we found the dead snake. It seems the snake was not cooked, but fell afterwards. But it was too late as most of us had consumed the food,” a villager said.