On September 11th, 94 students from the primary school section of Huamei Experimental School in Puning, Lufeng, Shanwei City, Guangdong Province, experienced a food poisoning incident. It has been a week since the incident, and official media falsely claimed that 85 students had been discharged from the hospital. However, parents revealed that most of the students are still hospitalized, with the hospital forcing them to be discharged and the school failing to address any issues.
Parents reported to the Chinese Communist Party’s official media that their children had diarrhea at school seven times, with the school failing to notify the parents. It wasn’t until the evening when parents went to pick up their children from school that they learned about the incident. Most of the affected students were from the primary school section. Another parent mentioned that their son, who stayed at the school dormitory, started vomiting and having diarrhea on the morning of the 11th, but they only received a call from the teacher after 7 pm, mentioning a slight fever and diarrhea, which the parent initially thought was just a common cold.
The Education Bureau of Lufeng City issued a notification stating that on the morning of September 11th, 94 students from the primary school section of Huamei Experimental School in Puning, Shanwei City, had reported gastrointestinal discomfort. According to the official report, 85 students had returned home after treatment, while 9 students remained hospitalized for observation. However, the reality differs from the official report.
A parent, using the pseudonym Shi Li, told Epoch Times that around 3 pm on the 11th, teachers called parents to pick up their children due to discomfort. Upon taking them to the hospital for examination, they discovered that it was a case of food poisoning. The school cafeteria was outsourced, and the school could not keep it quiet any longer, resulting in the public disclosure of the incident. Children mentioned that the chicken wings tasted off. The issue remains unresolved, with children experiencing daily abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting, and some even requiring oxygen due to severe pain. Some children have been admitted to the ICU.
Shi Li stated that until now, the school has failed to clarify the cause of poisoning, and the hospital has not provided a diagnosis. When children experience abdominal pain, they are immediately put on IV drips. The hospital is compelling children to be discharged. Although official media reported that 85 people had been discharged and 9 were still hospitalized, it is deceptive. Many are still hospitalized, with at least thirty to forty people at Lufeng People’s Hospital alone. Some parents are concerned about the local hospital’s capabilities and have taken their children to provincial hospitals for examination and treatment.
Shi Li further mentioned that the school’s leaders have not visited the hospitalized children, coming only when necessary. On September 16th, a parent who had been caring for their child day and night collapsed and was taken to the emergency room. The school leaders made an appearance briefly and left once some parents caused a commotion. Local police officials even called directly to request the removal of certain videos.
As of now, the hospital has yet to determine the cause, prolonging the children’s suffering, with daily episodes of abdominal pain. Despite the children not fully recovering, the hospital continues to push for discharge. The local system seems to protect each other, favoring the affluent individuals.
With no better options, parents are demanding that similar incidents be prevented to safeguard student health and safety. Some of their demands include comprehensive health checks for all affected students, establishing a long-term health monitoring mechanism, transparent disclosure of cafeteria and food ingredient issues, offering refunds and easy transfer for affected students, rebuilding parent groups for improved communication, providing appropriate nutrition compensation for affected students, and holding accountable those responsible criminally and legally.
Finally, the parents request a written response from the school within five business days regarding the aforementioned demands.
Public records indicate that Huamei Experimental School in Puning, Shanwei City is located in Donghai Street, Lufeng City. Founded in 2017 by Guangdong Puning Huamei Education Investment Co., Ltd., the school had a total investment of 800 million RMB, covering an area of approximately 280 acres. The Phase 1 construction area is around 180,000 square meters, offering a twelve-year integrated education system from primary to high school.