Broccoli is recalled across Italy after one man is killed and nine people are hospitalised in botulism outbreak
Luigi Di Sarno, 52, died on Thursday after purchasing a broccoli and sausage sandwich from a street vendor on the Diamante seafront in the province of Cosenza. Nine others were hospitalised with similar symptoms after eating the same meal, including several members of Di Sarno's family.
The individuals being treated in Annunziata Hospital in Cosenza include two 17-year-olds and two women in their 40s. Two of the patients were reportedly in a serious condition when they arrived at the intensive care unit.
All exhibit symptoms of botulism, a rare but life-threatening condition caused by toxins produced by Clostridium botulinum bacteria.
Following the outbreak in the Cosenza area, the Paola Public Prosecutor's Office has ordered the immediate seizure of a commercial product, understood to be jars of broccoli in oil.
The food truck in question has also been seized and an investigation has been opened into the spread of the toxin.
Vials of 'antitoxin serum' to treat the botulism are being rapidly flown across Italy to address the emergency in Cosenza and treat patients.
Calabria Region's Department of Health and Welfare said: 'The emergency procedure established in these cases has been activated, which requires immediate notification to the Poison Control Center in Pavia, the only national centre designated for the management of botulism.
'No region or hospital in the country is authorised to store the antivenom in their own facilities. This serum, however, is exclusively available to the Ministry of Health, which holds it in designated secure locations and distributes it only through the Lombardy Poison Control Centre.
'The first two vials, used for the first patients, were sent directly from the Military Pharmacy in Taranto. However, as the number of cases increased, additional supplies became necessary.
'Yesterday, the Calabria Region, through Azienda Zero, provided a 118 aircraft that flew to the San Camillo Hospital in Rome, where the ministry had centralised additional vials of the antivenom to facilitate distribution.'
Seven more vials of the serum were delivered to the affected region by air ambulance, 'one for injection and six as a reserve'.
Di Sarno, an artist and musician originally from Cercola, in the province of Naples, was on holiday in Calabria with his family.
After they ate the sandwich on the Tyrrhenian coast of Cosenza, he began driving back home to Naples. On the way, on the highway near Lagonegro in Potenza, the 52-year-old fell ill.
His health deteriorated, and he died in the small town in Basilicata on Thursday before reaching the San Giovanni Hospital in Lagonegro. The judiciary has ordered an autopsy to determine the cause of death but local media suspect it was botulism.
The infected broccoli comes just days after eight people reportedly fell ill with botulism after eating infected guacamole at a festival in Sardinia from July 22 to 24.
An 11-year-old boy remains hospitalised in intensive care at the Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome, after being transferred by helicopter from the Brotzu Hospital in Cagliari for poisoning contracted during the Fiesta Latina in Monserrato, La Repubblica reports.
A 38-year-old woman who also ate a taco with guacamole at a kiosk at the festival in the Cagliari hinterland has reportedly died after her condition worsened in hospital.
The travelling festival was on its way to Tortolì but has now been suspended by local authorities.
The Cagliari Public Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation into the incident and a recall notice, published by the Ministry of Health, was reportedly issued for Metro Chef avocado pulp because of the possible presence of botulinum toxin.
The office, led by Chief Prosecutor Domenico Fiordalisi, is also investigating another crime related to the sale of harmful foods and medical liability in the handling of the case, reported the Corriere del Mezzogiorno newspaper.
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