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RIYADH: According to family members, it was the banana spring rolls that
killed Zaid, a nine-year-old boy who died after
being admitted on Sunday morning for physical symptoms of food poisoning.
Zaid’s parents are still with their
10-year-old daughter, Arwa, who is in intensive
care at Obeid Specialist Hospital
in Riyadh.
According to the boy’s
paternal uncle, a friend of Zaid’s father Abdul Jabbar came by Saturday night with food.
“All four members of the
family enjoyed the Chinese spring rolls stuffed with bananas without
knowing the consequences of consuming the food,” said the uncle Abdul Rahman.
By Sunday morning the
boy was crying due to extreme abdominal pain. He was admitted to hospital
at approximately 8:30 a.m.
“The hospital discharged
the boy at 12:30 p.m.,” said Abdul Rahman. “He
was readmitted at 1:30 p.m. because he kept complaining of stomach pains
after returning home.”
The boy died at about 3
p.m. at the hospital.
Arwa is being watched, but it is not
clear if the girl too had been complaining of pain or whether she fell ill
after her brother was taken to hospital.
“Doctors are monitoring
her progress and we are all praying for her recovery at a time when the
family has already lost a member,” Abdul Rahman
said.
Abdul Rahman said he had no qualms of conscience against the
person who brought the food. “He did it with good intentions,” he said.
However, he added that
he still could not find a good reason for the doctors to discharge the
patient from hospital so quickly. “This is a good lesson for others and
signals a firm warning for doctors to prevent such recurrences,” he said.
Officials at the Middle East International School
confirmed that Zaid and Arwa
were reading in Grade Three and Four, respectively. The school conducted a
special session to offer prayers to the deceased.
“The news of the tragedy
came as a great shock for the staff and students. Zaid
was an active and amiable student who was good in his studies,” said a
schoolteacher who did not want his name published.
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