Three persons, including a man and his son, died and 35 others were hospitalised owing to acute gastroenteritis reportedly caused by consuming contaminated piped drinking water supplied by the gram panchayat at Maidolalu village in Bhadravati taluk.
On Sunday morning, 38 persons from the village, who complained of vomiting, diarrhoea and stomach ache, were admitted to McGann Hospital and another private hospital in the city. Shivappa, 75, and his son Hanumanthappa, 35, failed to respond to the treatment and died. Panchaksharappa, 64, also breathed his last early on Monday.
District Health Officer Hanumanthappa C. told The Hindu that the consumption of the contaminated piped drinking water is suspected to be the reason for the outbreak of gastroenteritis. The water samples collected from two overhead tanks in the village and from the house of the patients have been sent to the laboratory.
He said some of the patients had displayed strong symptoms of cholera too.
Mr. Hanumanthappa said that apart from those hospitalised, 26 persons received treatment as outpatients at the primary health centre in Maidolalu. Five new cases were reported on Monday and the situation was being closely monitored, he said.
