Malaysian in a coma in Shenzhen; two others said to have died

KUALA LUMPUR: A 66-year-old Malaysian, Tang Gon Seang, is among more than a dozen people who are in a coma after eating star fruits in Shenzhen province in China.

Two patients have died at the Shenzhen General Hospital after eating the fruit.

Tang, a retired assistant headmaster of SRJK (C) Kwang Hwa in Butterworth and his wife Teoh Hui Fong, 58, had gone to visit their engineer son in Shenzhen on Feb 18.

On March 29, he passed out and was rushed to the Shenzhen hospital, where has been in a coma since.

Tang’s brother-in-law Teoh Thian Lye, 55, said that at first doctors at the intensive care unit were baffled by his condition.

Then, a specialist at the hospital asked Hui Fong whether her husband had eaten star fruits and she replied he had eaten some which he bought from a wet market there.

“The specialist then told her there were more than 10 people in the hospital, who also fell into a coma after eating the star fruits bought in Shenzhen. Two had even died,” said Thian Lye at MCA Public Complaints and Services Department head Datuk Michael Chong’s office yesterday.

The family is seeking Chong’s help as they could not afford the huge hospital bill and want to bring Tang back to Malaysia.

The hospital bill is RM1,000 a day after being reduced from RM5,000 a day. To bring home Tang, they also require a medical report on his condition and the cause of illness to ascertain whether he could be flown back.

However, the Shenzhen General Hospital has refused to give the report and only provided a note in Mandarin which stated that Tang had suffered food poisoning after eating star fruits.

The note added that Tang suffered renal failure, high blood pressure, lung problems and breathing difficulties.

“The family is in a fix. They hope the hospital can reduce the fees,” said Chong.

He said they also wanted to warn other Malaysians in Shenzhen not to eat star fruits while there. Chong said notices had been put up at the Shenzhen General Hospital warning people about eating the fruit.

What is going on with these China guys? Why would they want to recycle the fruits ?