ANN/VIETNAM NEWS – Twenty young children, aged 23 to 34 months, from Giang Ma Preschool in northern Vietnam’s mountainous Lai Chau province, are in stable condition following fears of possible rat poison ingestion.
A teacher discovered several children in her class holding what appeared to be rat poison tablets. Concerned the children may have mistaken the tablets for sweets, she quickly alerted local health authorities. All 20 children were immediately taken to Lai Chau Provincial General Hospital, where they underwent medical examination and treatment.
Doctors at the hospital performed emergency care with remote guidance from Hanoi’s Bach Mai Hospital Poison Control Centre.
Two children exhibited symptoms of abdominal pain and nausea, raising concerns of potential poisoning, while the remaining children showed no immediate symptoms but were kept under observation.
By late afternoon, the hospital confirmed that all 20 children were in stable condition, though they will remain under observation for 24 to 72 hours as a precaution.
Authorities reported that the poison had been placed in a storage room adjacent to the children’s classroom to address a rodent problem. A teacher had purchased the tablets the day prior but had forgotten to inform her colleagues.
To ensure the children’s safety, authorities are sending samples to central health labs for further testing to verify the cause of the symptoms and prevent similar incidents in the future.
