Over 200 villagers, including elderly persons and children, were taken ill after they had lunch at a marriage function at Padmapuram village of S.R. Puram mandal, 40 km from here, on Friday.
According to information, a large number of guests from several villages of S.R. Puram and neighboring mandals attended the marriage and had lunch. Around 5 p.m., many people who attended the wedding complained of dizziness and nausea, while several women, elderly, and children swooned at Padmapuram and surrounding villages.
As group after group of the sick started reaching the government hospital at S.R. Puram mandal headquarters, medical officers at Chittoor were alerted about the issue.
Between 5 p.m. and 8.30 p.m., over 80 patients were referred to the higher medical institutions at Chittoor and Tirupati, while several others were rushed to the government and private hospitals at Puttur, Chittoor, and Pallipattu in Tamil Nadu.
District Immunisation Officer P. Ravi Raju who rushed to the spot, said that about a dozen ambulances were deployed to the villages. “Medical, paramedical, revenue, and police personnel acted swiftly in transporting the sick persons to various hospitals. As of now, we have information that except falling ill, all are absolutely out of danger. The reason behind this incident will be probed," he said.
Senior police officials from Chittoor and Nagari rushed to the villages and monitored the situation.
