LIMPOPO – A funeral at Mpheni Hamakhakhi took a tragic turn when 16 mourners were rushed to Elim Hospital for suspected food poisoning after drinking a cooldrink purchased from a nearby spaza shop last week.

The Rakvo family was mourning the loss of their three-year-old son, who was buried on March 4.

Shortly after the proceedings began, however, several mourners experienced severe headaches and stomach pains.

Family spokesperson Mpho Rakvo confirmed that 16 people received treatment at Elim Hospital, with three admitted for further care.

One affected family member described the incident, saying, “We are still concerned as we do not know exactly what happened. I thought I was going to die. I cannot understand why this happened, but someone will have to account for it. Although we received treatment, we are still suffering.”

She urged caution and mentioned that local health inspectors have taken samples of the cooldrinks for testing.

Vhembe District Municipality’s health department manager Michael Mukwevho said officials visited the family and the funeral parlour owner after the incident was reported.

The owner confirmed that the cooldrink that was served at the funeral, had been bought from a spaza shop in Hamashau Thenga. The shop owner was questioned and provided video footage showing the cooldrinks were still wrapped in their packages when sold.

Trency Mufamadi, the manager of Munakisi Funeral Granite and Tombstone, apologised to the family and confirmed that they had purchased the cooldrink from the local spaza shop.

“When we were informed that mourners were feeling sick, we took them to Elim Hospital. Six more people later complained of feeling unwell, and we sent them to a doctor at our expense,” she said.

Mufamadi also added that after the incident, she contacted the child’s father to understand what had happened and that they plan to visit the family soon. Authorities are awaiting the laboratory results from the cooldrink samples to determine the exact cause of the poisoning.