BERNAMA – Contaminated Food And Equipment Cause Of PJ Theme Park Incident

SHAH ALAM, Nov 7 (Bernama) — The Selangor State Health Department (JKNS) said the food poisoning incident at a government agency’s Family Day programme at a Petaling Jaya theme park on Oct 4 was due to contamination of the food and cooking equipment used during meal preparation.

It said in a statement that it received a notification from the Petaling District Health Office (PKD) regarding the incident on Oct 6 and subsequently conducted a detailed investigation.

It said that preliminary investigations and active case detection showed that 322 out of 4,710 people exposed (6.8 per cent) had symptoms such as diarrhoea, vomiting and stomach pain.

“Most of the cases, or 92 per cent, involved adults, while the remainder were children and teenagers.

“All affected individuals received treatment, and no cases required hospital admission or intensive care (ICU), and no deaths were reported,” the statement read.

The statement came following media reports and viral social media posts claiming that over 800 staff and family members from a government agency were affected by food poisoning during their Family Day event at the theme park on Oct 4.

JKNS said further investigations found that several factors contributed to the incident, including a small number of handlers preparing large amounts of food, food being stored for too long before being served, and possible cross-contamination during cooking.

A risk assessment found that the food poisoning came from contaminated food prepared in the theme park’s kitchen.

“As a control and preventive measure, JKNS ordered the closure of the theme park’s kitchen for cleaning and disinfection purposes.

“However, the theme park was not closed, as the source of contamination did not originate from the park’s general environment,” it said.

JKNS said the kitchen was allowed to reopen after it was certified clean and met all food safety requirements.

The agency also held risk communication sessions and engagement with the theme park management and event organisers to strengthen food hygiene practices.

“Notifications were also sent to other district and state health offices to assist in detecting and monitoring any symptomatic cases,” it also said.

JKNS advised all food handlers to comply with the Food Act 1983 and the Food Hygiene Regulations 2009, and to make food safety and cleanliness a priority at every stage of preparation.

Food handlers were also reminded to keep themselves and their equipment clean, use fresh ingredients and clean water, cook food thoroughly, and ensure food is consumed within four hours of cooking.

“The public is also advised to choose clean food premises, practise the ‘see, smell and taste’ concept before eating, and seek medical attention at the nearest health facility if they experience symptoms such as diarrhea, vomiting, or abdominal pain after eating food purchased outside,” JKNS added..

— BERNAMA

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