Four people remain hospitalised following the outbreak of a suspected food-related illness at the City’s Culemborg 1 Safe Space.
Patricia Van der Ross, Mayco member for community services and health, on Monday said the City was awaiting the results of medical testing following several residents at the shelter facility displaying indications of illness.
She noted that investigations were ongoing and it would be premature to speculate on the cause of the incident after concerned homeless persons advocates raised the alarm about the quality of food being served at the facility.
“On November 11, emergency services were dispatched to the City’s Culemborg 1 Safe Space, as 16 male clients displayed symptoms of diarrhoea, nausea, headaches, vomiting and abdominal cramps. Seven were hospitalised, while the remaining nine received on-site medical care. Glucose solutions were prepared by the staff under medical guidance.
“Three clients were discharged on November 12,” said Van der Ross. She added that it may take several days to get back test results to confirm the cause of the illness.
According to Van der Ross, the facility is currently receiving increased sanitisation. “The City Health Department is assisting with screening and conducting assessments on-site...Further updates will be provided as more information becomes available,” said Van der Ross.
Friend of the homeless and anti-homeless activist, Carlos Mesquita, said: “The call I had from residents on Sunday morning left no doubt in their mind or mine that what the residents were experiencing was as a result of the food they have been subjected to for as long as I can remember since (the food catering supplier) was appointed as service provider. And I posted about it as such on social media.”
“Despite the Mayor constantly painting the safe spaces as these idyllic places where people living on the streets should only be too happy to be residing in, the truth is, that they are extremely the opposite and a health hazard and dangerous environment for already disadvantaged human beings,” said Mesquita.
Chief Executive Officer of NPO Social Transformation Action Defined (STAND), Stacey Doorly-Jones, said they have had a number of complaints since the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We had pictures which were submitted to the City showing the lack of quality of the food which included maggots present in food and the smell of it. The City has on a number of occasions been informed of complaints of the food not being up to standard. Nothing was done,” said Doorly-Jones.
Responding to the complaints about the food quality, Van der Ross, said: “The City can confirm that there have been complaints from individuals in the past; however, we are confident in the quality of food served to clients.
It must be noted that investigations are still ongoing and it would be premature to speculate on the cause of this incident.
“It is also worth noting that the Culemborg 1 Safe Space has been in operation for over five years, and this is the first time that an incident of this nature has occurred.”
Cape Times