Anti-weevil pesticides kill one, 14 in hospital

Some Malawians are asking the Malawi Bureau of Standards to examine some anti-weevil pesticides following the death of a three-year-old girl has died while 14 others are receiving treatment at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH) after taking food suspected to have been contaminated with anti-weevil pesticide in maize.

QECH Hospital Director,  Kelvin Mponda, said the affected individuals, all residents of Machinjiri, were admitted on Friday evening.

Mponda said currently,  the 14 are undergoing treatment at the hospital with some showing signs of improvement.

Mponda indicated that the victims likely consumed nsima cooked with flour containing the poisonous substance. Maria Herbert, whose child is among those affected, equally suspected that the contamination stemmed from pesticides used in maize preservation.