Cholera closes fish stalls at Hong Kong supermarket chain
( 2003-09-02 14:16) (Agencies)
A Hong Kong-based supermarket chain owned by tycoon Li Ka-shing has closed
all its seafood stalls after health officials found cholera bacteria in one of
its fish tanks, the chain's spokeswoman said Tuesday.
A water sample taken Aug. 26 from a tank at a ParkNShop store contained the
bacteria.
ParknShop has closed all its seafood stalls as a precaution, company
spokeswoman Teresa Pang said in an interview with Hong Kong's Commercial Radio
station. Officials said they were investigating the source of contamination.
It was the first time cholera has been traced to a Hong Kong supermarket and
the second time this year that the bacteria was discovered in the territory,
Food and Environmental Hygiene Department spokeswoman Iris Au said. Officials
detected it in a water sample from a market fish stall on Aug. 20, she said.
Four of five people stricken by cholera in Hong Kong this year have
recovered, and the remaining patient _ a 19-year-old woman who fell sick after
eating seafood _ was listed in stable condition as of Monday night, Health
Department spokeswoman Diana Kam said.
Four cholera cases were reported in Hong Kong last year. Symptoms of the
illness include diarrhea, vomiting and cramps.
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