Luigi Di Sarno, a 52-year-old from Cercola, is suspected of consuming broccoli from a sandwich purchased at an ambulatory food truck in Diamante (Cosenza).
The death of a 45-year-old woman is also under investigation. Nine other people have been hospitalized.
Luigi Di Sarno died from suspected poisoning with prosecutors having seized the product across Italy.
A tragedy occurred within a few hours in Calabria, but is now shaking the national agri-food supply chain. The Public Prosecutor's Office is carrying out checks throughout Italy for a commercial product: according to sources, jars of broccoli in oil are suspected of being the source of a serious case of botulism reported in recent days in the Cosenza area.
According to the investigators' findings so far, there could be two victims. In addition to Luigi Di Sarno, 52, a street artist from Cercola, in the province of Naples, who had spent several days in Diamante, Calabria, selling his paintings at local markets, the investigation is also underway into the death of a 45-year-old woman, resident of Praia a Mare, in the Cosenza area, a few days ago.
Both are suspected of having consumed a sandwich from an outpatient food cart, which allegedly contained contaminated broccoli. But there is another circumstance linking the two cases: both are said to have visited a clinic in Belvedere Marittimo, and it is suspected that doctors may not have identified the cause of the illness.
At the private clinic, Di Sarno was reportedly advised to seek medical help at a more specialized facility. He then decided to return to Campania. However, during the journey, his condition deteriorated. An air ambulance also intervened, but the 52-year-old died before reaching the Lagonegro hospital. The woman also felt unwell after consuming food from the same vendor. She also went to the Belvedere Marittimo clinic, but did not undergo any surgical intervention.
The woman died a few days ago and the funeral ceremony was held yesterday. Therefore, the Prosecutor's Office will order the exhumation of the body for autopsy. According to reports, her brother, in light of recent developments on food poisoning cases, has suspected the cause of his sister's death and has decided to take legal action.
The Prosecutor's Office, led by Domenico Fiordalisi, has opened an investigation into the suspected commission of the criminal offense of "murder as a consequence of another crime" and "sale of harmful food". The street vendor suspected of selling the contaminated product is under investigation, while the companies suspected of supplying the food used to prepare the products sold are also being investigated.
Prosecutors may also examine any medical liability related to the handling of the case, including the procedures followed at the clinic where Di Sarno and the woman sought initial help. The investigation now aims to seize and recall all packaging of the suspected product from the market, to prevent further endangerment of consumers.
“Investigations,” writes the Public Prosecutor’s Office led by Domenico Fiordalisi, “have so far established that the victims and infected persons consumed potentially contaminated food, purchased from a street vendor operating in the Diamante area. By order of Deputy Public Prosecutor Maria Porcelli, the van used for street vending has been seized.”
According to the Prosecution, "initial findings indicate that the vehicle was parked in the sun all day, a condition that may have favored the spread of botulinum toxin in food products, especially if they were not properly stored."
Investigators emphasize that “the charges are in the first steps and will be subject to further technical and scientific verifications, with the support of the NAS (Food Safety Unit) and the ASP (Public Health Authority). The judicial authorities reserve the right to make further decisions based on the results of the microbiological analyses.”
“It should be emphasized,” it further states, “that in some cases, the clinical condition worsened due to the lack of an immediate diagnosis, as the symptoms were not immediately identified as typical of botulinum toxin poisoning, thus delaying the start of specific treatment.” The Public Prosecutor’s Office states that it “will continue to monitor the development of this case with the utmost attention, being aware of its importance for public health and food safety.”
"Any consumer who purchased food from street vendors in the Diamante area in the days prior to the onset of symptoms is encouraged to contact local health authorities immediately," the statement concludes.
Following this dramatic event, the Department of Health and Welfare of the Calabria Region stated that “the emergency procedure foreseen in such cases has been activated, which includes the immediate notification of the Poison Control Center in Pavia, the only national center for the management of botulism cases.”
“No region or hospital in the country,” the statement adds, “is authorized to store the antivenom on its premises. This serum is available exclusively to the Ministry of Health, which stores it in secure places and distributes it only through the Lombardy Poison Control Center.”
The first two bottles, used for the first patients, were sent by the Military Pharmacy in Taranto. As the number of cases increased, more supplies became necessary. “Through the collaboration between the Annunziata Hospital in Cosenza, the Ministry of Health and the National Institute of Health,” the Department explains, “seven more bottles of antidote were sent to be kept as a reserve in the hospital’s intensive care unit.”
An extraordinary mission was organized yesterday: the Calabria Region, through Azienda Zero, provided an emergency 118 plane that flew to the San Camillo Hospital in Rome, where additional bottles of antidote were concentrated. “Currently,” the statement concludes, “the Annunziata Hospital has a reserve of antidote, as an extraordinary measure due to the emergency situation, although standard practice does not foresee the direct holding of this medicine in hospitals.”
Case in Cagliari: A 38-year-old woman dies
The case in the Cosenza area comes just days after another serious case of botulism poisoning in Sardinia. There, investigators are investigating a guacamole sauce used during the Fiesta Latina, an event that took place from July 22 to 25 in Monserrato, in the metropolitan area of Cagliari, and then in Tortolì, in the Ogliastra region.
There, too, eight people were hospitalized with symptoms consistent with botulism poisoning. A 38-year-old woman, Roberta Pitzalis, died today. The only thing the patients had in common was their participation in the food festival. After the first cases, the event was immediately suspended.
These two separate incidents may be linked by the presence of Clostridium botulinum, the bacteria responsible for the dangerous neurotoxin. Investigations are ongoing in several directions, but there are fears that it could spread panic about food safety.
edition
t7 live
