More than 90 people had been hospitalized in Takeo province as of Tuesday evening after eating tainted noodles during a Buddhist ceremony at a pagoda on Monday, officials said.
People from six villages in Cheang Tong commune attended the ceremony, where they ate an evening meal that included fresh rice noodles purchased from a local producer and wholesaler, according to Tram Kak district governor Toek Songlin.
That night, members of the 32 families who attended the ceremony began falling ill, experiencing symptoms including vomiting, diarrhea and fainting, Mr. Songlin said, adding that 89 villagers had checked into the district referral hospital as of Tuesday morning.
“We sent a sample of the noodles to the laboratory at the provincial health department for testing, but we don’t have the results back yet,” he said. “We have ordered the house where the noodles are made to close temporarily because we are afraid that more people will get poisoned if they buy the noodles.”
Heng Thy, director of the district hospital, said Tuesday evening that 92 villagers had been treated there, with about 30 returning home during the day.
