56 die after drinking poisoned beer

56 die after drinking poisoned beer

It was an event to bury the dead and celebrate thereafter. But the celebration has turned to a tragedy as 56 people have been killed after drinking beer believed to have been poisoned.

An additional 49 mourners have been admitted in
hospitals.

The incident happened in Chitima and Songo
districts in the Northeastern Tete province of
Mozambique.

Health authorities in the southern African country
confirmed the incident on Sunday.

They also confirmed that 146 more people have
reported to hospitals to be examined for the
poisoning, district health official, Alex Albertini, told
Radio Mozambique.

“Those who drank the contaminated brew were
attending a funeral in the region on Saturday”,
Albertini said.

Pombe, a traditional Mozambican beer, is made from
millet or corn flour. Authorities believe that the
drink was poisoned with crocodile bile during the
course of the funeral.

Blood and traditional beer samples were being sent
to the capital, Maputo, to be tested, said provincial
health director, Carle Mosse.

“We don’t have the capacity to test the samples,”
she told Radio Mozambique.

Mosse told Radio Mozambique on Sunday that she
expected the situation to worsen because the region
did not have the necessary resources to deal with
the disaster.

Mourners who drank the beer in the morning
reported no illness, while those who drank the beer
in the afternoon, fell ill, authorities said. They
believe the beer must have been poisoned while
funeral goers were at the cemetery.

The woman who brewed the beer is also among the
dead.

Police are investigating the incident.

Health authorities have begun collecting food parcels
and other items for donation to the affected
families.