A total of 16 pupils and two teachers from MapleBear Kids Adventure Place in Eunos have fallen ill in recent days, with the pre-school's chief executive saying that stomach flu is the most likely cause.
In a note sent to parents on Thursday, March 12, the school said that eight children from one class had been diagnosed with food poisoning, while seven other children and two teachers were diagnosed with stomach flu. Another four cases were still awaiting doctors' diagnoses at the time.
However, MapleBear chief executive Patricia Koh said in a media reply on Friday, March 13, that stomach flu appears to be the more probable explanation for the incident. She noted that more than 85% of the pupils who consumed the same food did not fall ill.
According to Koh, the Eunos centre has 116 pupils in total.
Stomach flu, medically known as gastroenteritis, is an infection of the stomach and intestines typically caused by viruses such as norovirus. It spreads easily from person to person. In contrast, food poisoning usually occurs after consuming contaminated food containing harmful bacteria such as salmonella or toxins and is often linked to a specific meal.
Koh said that the first reported case in this cluster involved a teacher who began feeling unwell after work on March 10 and was later diagnosed with stomach flu. The teacher's classroom was located on the same floor as another class where eight children fell sick over the following two days.
Some parents told the pre-school that doctors had diagnosed their children with food poisoning after learning that they had eaten catered meals at the centre. Eight other children whose classrooms were also on the same floor later developed similar symptoms.
"The good news is that the vomiting has stopped, and all affected children are now resting at home. One child has already returned to school after a day of rest," Koh told The Straits Times.
The pre-school also informed its catering provider, SATS Food Services, about the illnesses. In a media reply on Friday, March 13, the company said that it had supplied 96 lunch meals to the Eunos centre on March 11. These meals came from a batch of 2,188 meals prepared that day and served to several other schools.
"To date, we have not received reports of any issues with the meals from other schools," the company said, as quoted by The Straits Times.
SATS added that besides the catered lunch, students at the pre-school also consumed snacks such as cheese sandwiches during teatime on March 11. The sandwiches were prepared in-house at the centre.
The company said its meals are planned, prepared and delivered under strict food safety protocols, and samples from the batch of meals served that day have been sent for laboratory testing.
Meanwhile, the pre-school has stepped up precautionary measures. Disinfection misting has been carried out in the affected classrooms and across the building's third level, while toys, teaching materials and other learning resources have also been sanitised.
Koh added that a professional cleaning company has been hired to carry out deep cleaning of the premises over the weekend.
Early Childhood Development Agency and the Singapore Food Agency have been contacted for more information.
