Mother, 3 kids die after rice meal in Ilorin
Tragedy struck in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, as four members of a family, including a mother and her three children, passed away after consuming a rice meal.
The incident occurred in the Oshin area along Asa Dam Road on Saturday.
The victims, identified as Abibat, Zainab and Abdulfatai, aged approximately 9, 7, and 5 years old, were buried according to Islamic rites amidst suspicions of food poisoning.
According to a family source, the family had prepared rice for breakfast before the parents left the house on Saturday morning.
“Upon their return in the evening, the mother began preparing dinner and noticed that her eldest daughter, who had been sleeping, was cold and clenching her teeth.
“The girl was immediately rushed to Oreofe Hospital and subsequently referred to both Ilorin General
Hospital and the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH), where she was pronounced dead.
“Tragically, when the family returned home with her body, they discovered the two younger children exhibiting similar symptoms.
“They were also rushed to UITH but succumbed to the illness early Monday morning. The mother began vomiting on Sunday and was taken to UITH, where she too passed away. The father, who also ate from the rice meal, has been admitted for tests,” the source said.
When our reporter visited the residence of the family patriarch, Alhaji Jagunmolu Adinni, on Monday night, sympathisers were still arriving to console the bereaved family.
Speaking on the tragedy, Alhaji Jagunmolu Adinni expressed his acceptance of the incident as a trial from Almighty Allah.
The father remains in the hospital, now left with only one surviving son, Muhammad Basheer, he added.