DAVAO CITY — A suspected farm chemical downed 211 schoolchildren from Mirab Elementary School in Upi town in the province of Maguindanao del Norte after possibly inhaling contaminated air from the sorounding farms.
Health authorities were told that a farm near the school campus sprayed insecticide prior to the incident.
The class suspended started on May 11, a day after students started to experience headache, dizziness, complained of nausea and were vomitting, a sympton of positive chemical poisoning.
Dr. Almadin Dimaukom, the chief of hospital at Datu Blah T. Sinsuat District Hospital, in an interview with Newsline Philippines suspected that students inhaled the air from the farms which used organophosphates and aromatic hydrocarbons.
“May dumating na apat na pasyente na dumating sa hospital namin complaining of vomiting,headache tapos abdominal pain tapos dizziness yon nga apat na bata from the school so ang sabi kasi meron daw silang naaamoy na iba sabi na nakausap ko na isang teacher na nasa loob sila ng classroom and suddenly meron silang naamoy na iba as describe na parang bulok na bayabas may nakikita na ako doc may lumalabas na bata nasususka tapos…madami na mga pasyente,” Dimaukom recalled.
Translation (Four patients arrived at the hospital complaining about vomiting, headache and then abdominal pain, then dizziness- those were the four kids from the school, they were saying they sniffed something strange while inside the classroom, suddenly they smelled like a rotten guava, the teacher told me when we talked, and suddenly she saw kids vomiting while getting out of the classroom… many of them)
Wikipedia defined Organophosphates as a group of human-made chemicals used to poison insects and mammals which is widely used as insecticides in agricultural practices.
Science says prolonged exposure can lead to health problems, including increased risks for cardiovascular and respiratory disease, and cancer.
While aromatic hydrocarbons, are organic compounds containing one or more aromatic rings.
The World Health organizations in a report on November 30, 2021 stated that “Human health effects of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons as ambient air pollutants.”
The WHO report added “Epidemiological studies have shown that PAHs are associated with reduced lung function, exacerbation of asthma, and increased rates of obstructive lung diseases and cardiovascular diseases.
As of today, 81 students are still confined at Datu Blah T. Sinsuat District Hospital while some 130 are under observation by the health authorities at Mirab Barangay Health Station.
Upi is a first class municipality with 59,004 people mostly belonging to the enthic group Teduray, majority are into traditional farming methord but there are those who practice modern farming.
The local government issued a statement that classes might resume on May 15, just in time for the completion of the ongoing decontamination.
Various health gorups are responding to the situation which include Rural Health Unit sof Upi,IPHO Maguindanao, LGU-Upi, the Philippine National Police, the Bureau of Fire Protection the 57th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army which works in coordination with the provincial health office’ Poison Management and Control Center.
The incident also led the local governmetn and health authorities to conduct reorientaion and health education in the affected communities.-Paul T. Palacio
