A family from Aseki Station, in Morobe’s Menyamya district, has been reported to eat the same bean that killed four children in Poiyu on Friday, May 5th.
Around midday last Friday, 11 Pake Elementary School children – aged 4-8 – consumed bean that was taken from a local man’s garden.
From the 11, four passed away at the Poiyu aid post in the evening after vomiting for over an hour.
Officer-in-charge of the Aseki Health Centre, Sr Mathilda Maborai, has raised concern that the bean species needs to be officially identified by specialists, and the community needs to be made aware of it.
“A family from Aseki Station also ate the bean, but in small amounts,” said Sr Maborai.
“When asked why, they said they confused it with the edible bean.
“We are already doing awareness around the health facility but are unable to reach out to the surrounding communities due to logistical and financial constraints.”