- The children who are between the ages of five, six, seven, and 15, were said to have complained of stomach aches, vomiting, and purging on Monday and Tuesday before their death
Five children have reported died after eating a meal on a farm in Nasarawa State.
The incident happened in Gidinye community of Obi Local Government Area of Nasarawa State.
The deaths of the children, which happened in the space of 24 hours, have trigger apprehension and panic among locals
The children were said to have complained of stomach aches, vomiting, and purging on Monday and Tuesday before their death.
The Publicity Secretary of the Migili Youth Association, Samuel Akala, confirmed the incident.
He disclosed the children alongside their parents went to their farms close to the Keana LG when they suddenly fell ill.
According to Akala, the children were between the ages of five, six, seven, and 15.
He implored the Nasarawa State Government and all the relevant authorities to swiftly look into the matter to contain the situation and save the lives of other children in the area.
He said, “We lost the five children in less than 24 hours in the same community. The children left home for the farm. While on the farm, one of them started complaining of stomach ache and started vomiting and purging at the same time.
“Within a short time, he began to have difficulty with his breathing, and when he was rushed home, he died. The other children had similar symptoms and died.
“The case is still on the increase and we are yet to discover the cause of their deaths.
“The circumstances that resulted in the sudden death of these children call for forensic findings. I suggest that the Center for Disease Control and the Primary Healthcare Development Agency should be invited to carry out disease surveillance in communities around Obi and Keana LGAs where there are reported cases of acute diarrhoea, vomiting, and death of children in the past few days.”
The State Epidemiologist, Dr Grace Tsakpa, also confirmed the incident, stating that healthcare workers had been deployed to the community to take samples of the surviving family members.
While noting that the results from the samples collected were yet to be released, Dr Tsakpa explained that from her observations, the cause of their deaths could be related to food poisoning because the ailments started immediately after they finished eating their meal on the farm.
She said, “For now, we have taken samples from the other family members, but our suspicion is going towards food poisoning. This is because the whole incident happened after they ate food at the farm.
“The five children belong to two brothers. The family (parents and children) went to the farm, cooked there, and ate. It was on the farm that one of the children started complaining of abdominal pains, and he later died. The other four children also died after developing symptoms.”
The State Epidemiologist further sent his condolences to both families for the untimely death of their children and assured them that she and her team would leave no stone unturned to unravel the actual cause of the children’s death
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