Durban: The Ndlovu family from the Cabhane village in uMzumbe on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast are mourning the loss of three children who died after experiencing symptoms associated with food poisoning last week.
This comes after a spate of food poisoning cases across the country resulted in several deaths and hospitalisations. Last week seven pupils from Bongucele Secondary School in Mtwalume were hospitalised when they became sick after they ate chips from a local vendor.
KZN Social Development spokesperson Thuba Vilane said in the Cabhane incident, the three children died while their grandmother had been hospitalised.
Two-year-old Ayanda Ndlovu and his six-year-old brother Okuhle Ndlovu died on Tuesday at home while their grandmother Celani Ndlovu, 64, and brother Cebo Ndlovu, 11, were taken to a hospital with vomiting and with diarrhoea.
“Just this morning, I received the news that the 11-year-old had sadly passed away. So it's three kids from the same family,” said Vilane.
He said Ayanda and Okuhle were laid to rest yesterday while Cebo’s funeral will be held soon. The condition of the grandmother could not be confirmed.
Vilane said MEC Mbali Shinga visited the family last week, where social workers, who were already at the home, provided her with a report.
“The problem is that it is not clear exactly what it is that they consumed. They can relay what they ate the previous day, but they are not sure what exactly could have been the cause,” he said.
He said that according to the report received from the Department of Health and the SAPS, samples were taken for testing. “We are still awaiting the results.”
MEC Shinga said while there were many cases of food poisoning around the country, she did not want to speculate that this case was one of them because there was no proof that they got sick because of the food they ate.
“We are not sure if it’s the water or the food,” said Vilane.
Vilane said Shinga also called for calm as community members threatened to protest.
“We heard that there were people who wanted to gather to protest and call for the closure of the foreign-owned shops, so the MEC called for calm,” said Vilane.
UMzumbe Municipality Mayor Bongani Nyuswa, Ugu District Municipality councillor Sizwe Ngcobo, and religious leaders were also part of the government delegation who visited the Ndlovu family.
In a statement, uMzumbe Municipality said no parent should endure the pain of losing a child in this manner.
The municipality said while respecting the rights of immigrants, particularly those in the country legally, the municipality emphasised its responsibility to protect local citizens.
“As a government, we denounce any practice that endangers our communities. It’s unacceptable for shops to sell goods that are not safe for consumption,” said the municipality.
The municipality called for a thorough investigation by law enforcement.
The KZN Department of Health could not be reached for comment.