Geylang Serai food poisoning - a one-off incident?
By Ong Dai Lin & Loh Chee Kong, TODAY | Posted: 06 April 2009 1042 hrs

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SINGAPORE: It was business as usual on Saturday for the food stalls at the Geylang Serai market - although one is now closed after more than 100 people developed food poisoning from eating there.

One of the victims, Madam Aminah Samijo, 57, is still in a coma at the Intensive Care Unit of Changi General Hospital. She became unconscious at home last Friday after eating at the Indian rojak stall, Rojak Geylang Serai.

Many customers turned up to find the stall shuttered, unaware that other than Mdm Aminah, at least 30 others - including children - have been warded at CGH, Tan Tock Hospital and KK Hospital.

This is the first time they have heard of a major food poisoning incident in the market, said hawkers and regular customers.

Some like material controller Omar Ahmad expressed surprise as the stall has been around for 20 years. Some said they would still buy from it when it re-opens.

Mr Omar, 56, said he ordered from it every weekend. “At first when I saw that it was closed, I thought they were taking a holiday.”

Mdm Rabeah Samson thinks the food poisoning might have less to do with the stall than with the surroundings. “I’ll not lose trust in the stall as nothing happened to me the previous times I ate from it,” said the 54-year-old housewife.

“But the environment in the centre is not very clean. Sometimes there is rubbish around and it is very near to the wet market.”

But banking officer Yeni Sani, 32, said: “I don’t think it’s the hygiene level of the stall or the centre. It’s a one-off incident, hopefully it won’t happen again.”

Hawkers at the market told TODAY that an Indian father and son team operate the stall with three workers.

A chicken rice seller who only wanted to be known as Mr Man said the stall owner was probably unaware of the mass food poisoning as he turned up on Saturday morning to set up the stall.

Inspectors from the National Environment Agency (NEA) came to close it down at about 8am, said Mr Man.

“He (the stall owner) looked ‘blur’ when the officers talked to him.”

A satay seller who didn’t want to be identified, said “The stall owner is usually very friendly. I’m shocked because he has been in the business for so long.”

For victim Madam Sutina Sedik though,it was a family routine that turned into a gastronomical nightmare over the weekend.

Mdm Sutina, 44, was with her mother on Friday when they stopped at the latter’s favourite Indian rojak stall to get lunch for themselves and her three sons at home.

Less than six hours later, both women were vomiting and had stomach cramps so severe an ambulance rushed them to CGH.

It was “mayhem” there, Mdm Sutina’s husband Johari Salim said on Sunday. “There was a huge crowd, many of them holding their stomachs and appearing in pain... I asked around whether they also ate rojak from that stall. They all said yes.”

Mr Johari was with his wife until 3am, only to drive his 18-year-old to the same hospital five hours later. Mdm Sutina, the only one in the family to be warded, is expected to be discharged on Monday.

Family members keeping vigil for Mdm Aminah declined to speak to the media yesterday.

The NEA and Ministry of Health (MOH) were notified by the stall’s patrons and the hospitals. A joint inspection of the stall has been carried out and samples collected.

Preliminary investigations indicate that rojak from the stall was behind the outbreak. The stall owner and his assistant have been directed to undergo screening at the Communicable Disease Centre.

An MOH spokesperson said investigations were still ongoing. The stall remains closed.

- TODAY/yb