Around 11h on 10/4, hundreds of parents streamed into the schoolyard of Binh Quoi Tay Primary School, seeking shade under roofs and trees to wait for their children. With the school suspending its semi-boarding program, families now face the challenge of transporting their children twice daily and providing their lunch and nap arrangements.
Under the intense 35 degrees C sun, Thanh Phong and his wife, residents of Binh Quoi ward, must take turns leaving work midday to pick up their grade one child.
"After picking up my child, I have to rush back to my company, 5km away. In the afternoon, my wife has to leave work early to take our child to school", Phong said, adding that his daughter suffered from sunstroke yesterday due to midday travel.
Lan, a parent of a grade one student, has also been struggling for the past two days. She shared that she has to rely on her parents to cook meals, then pick up her child for lunch, and later take them back to school for the afternoon session. Lan noted that suspending the semi-boarding service disrupts children's nap times, making it difficult to ensure their health when attending school for two sessions daily. She worries about managing the situation if it continues.
Meanwhile, Ngoc Trang, a parent of a grade three student, is preparing her child's meals herself and plans to continue doing so, even if the school resumes its semi-boarding service.
"My child reported issues with the food a few times, but I thought she was just a picky eater. After this incident, I don't feel comfortable letting my child eat at school", she stated.
Diep Thi Ngoc Tien, the school principal, acknowledged that the suspension of semi-boarding has caused significant disruption for parents but emphasized it is a necessary measure to ensure safety. The school will halt semi-boarding until at least next tuesday, pending the results of food sample tests.
Today, 220 out of over 900 students were absent from school, primarily from grades one and two. According to Tien, this number is lower than yesterday, when nearly 450 students did not attend. Many classes had more than half of their students absent, either receiving hospital treatment, monitoring their health at home, or staying home because parents could not arrange transportation.
Teachers will adjust lesson content depending on the situation. In classes with high absenteeism, students will primarily review old lessons.
"My colleagues and I are very concerned. We hope the cause can be identified soon to stabilize the situation, especially with final exams approaching", Tien said.
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A classroom at Binh Quoi Tay Primary School with only 10 students present, 21 absent, on the morning of 10/4. Photo: Le Nguyen
The incident occurred on 8/4. Binh Quoi Tay Primary School recorded over 100 student visits to the infirmary with symptoms of fatigue and fever. Among them, more than 40 students experienced vomiting and abdominal pain, suspected to be food poisoning, early in the morning before lunch.
As of the morning of 10/4, the total number of cases treated or hospitalized reached 148, according to statistics from the Department of Health. Initial test results from Gia Dinh People's Hospital indicated that 7 out of 10 students tested positive for Salmonella, a bacterium that causes diarrhea.
In a report submitted to the city, the Department of Food Safety stated that the school's cafeteria at Binh Quoi Tay Primary School is spacious, well-ventilated, and clean. However, the department suspects the meal on 7/4 was problematic. On that day, students ate chicken braised with ginger, cabbage soup with meat, stir-fried cucumber, and plums; the afternoon snack was flan.
The principal stated that the school uses industrial meal services, with each meal costing VND 37,000, including lunch and an afternoon snack.
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Parents picking up students midday, morning of 10/4. Photo: Le Nguyen
Le Nguyen
