THIRTY-SIX pupils from Gunda Primary School in Gunda HaLambani, Limpopo, have been admitted to Donald Fraser Hospital on Monday, 12 February.
This is after falling ill in class allegedly from eating snacks bought from a spaza shop outside the school.
On Wednesday, 14 February, nurses visited the school and asked the pupils what they ate.
It is alleged that most of them claimed to have bought snacks from a spaza shop. The reported symptoms included abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea and sore throats.
These emerged after the lunch break, causing concern among parents and teachers.
School principal Ndivhuwo Makhuvha told Daily Sun they inquired about what the pupils ate during break-time.
"We found that they all ate snacks, and when we tried to look inside the packets from different snacks, we saw small white things like glass," Makhuvha said.
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Makhuvha said they rushed the pupils to the Lambani Clinic, but the nurses indicated that the situation was beyond their capacity, leading to the transfer of the pupils to the hospital.
"They were released at 4pm on the same day, with one being discharged on Tuesday afternoon. As a preventive measure, the school no longer allows pupils to buy snacks outside the premises," he said.
One of the vendors who sells at the school gate claimed they have been selling the same snacks since last year.
"We never had any previous complaints about pupils falling ill. We buy snacks from a trusted shop in Thohoyandou," she said.
Limpopo Health spokesman Neil Shikwambana said pupils were then taken to Tshilidzini Hospital before being transferred to Donald Fraser Hospital.
"They received treatment, and the majority responded well, with only one child remaining admitted in the process of recovery. Environmental health practitioners and infection control visited the school to investigate the incident," he said.
Vhembe police spokesman Sergeant Vuledzani Dathi said: "Only an enquiry case docket has been registered and is investigated by Tshaulu Police Station. There are no arrests yet."
