BEIJING: At least one student died and 31 others fell ill in a suspected food poisoning case in northwest China's Shaanxi province, officials said today.
According to authorities with the education bureau of Zhashui County and the Children's Hospital in Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi, a student in Caoping Township was hospitalised on Wednesday for fever.
The student died of brain stem encephalitis yesterday.
From Thursday till today, 31 other students have been admitted to the hospital, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Xu Haoxiang, one of the students, said that he ate the steamed noodles provided by the school before falling sick. Xu and other students later started developing symptoms such as fever, diarrhoea and vomiting.
According to Xu, the potatoes and bean sprouts in the steamed noodles "tasted odd."
Seven students have been discharged. Of the students, 10 tested positive for Shigella Castellani, which can cause diarrhoea, the hospital said.
Authorities with the provincial center for disease control and prevention said they are still verifying the source of the infection, it said.