A woman and her 15-year-old daughter have died from suspected food poisoning after their Christmas Eve dinner.
Gianni Di Vita, his wife Antonella Di Ielsi, and their daughter Sara Di Vita began experiencing symptoms following the meal.
It was attended by 15 people, at their home on Wednesday (24 Dec) evening.
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The family visited A&E on Christmas Day (25 Dec) complaining of nausea, vomiting, and abdominal cramps, but were sent home.
They returned the next day on Boxing Day (26 Dec) with the same symptoms, only to be sent home again.
On Saturday (27 Dec), they were admitted a third time to Cardarelli Hospital in Campobasso, Italy.
Sara died in the ICU that night, followed a few hours later by Antonella, 50.
Gianni, 55, was airlifted yesterday (28 Dec) to the Spallanzani Institute in Rome, where he remains in intensive care.
The couple’s other daughter, 20, did not attend the dinner in question, and none of the other guests fell ill, as reported by Need To Know.
Investigators are now examining the food consumed at the meal, including fish, seafood, and mushrooms – “common ingredients in the town, part of the traditional Christmas menu,” according to locals.
Friends of Sara told local media: “We last spoke to Sara on Boxing Day, over the phone.
“She believed the heavy treatment at the hospital would be sufficient and didn’t expect her condition to deteriorate.”
Doctors initially suspected gastroenteritis, but investigators are now considering botulism, listeria, fulminant hepatitis, or “chemical poisoning” as possible causes of death.
Cardarelli ICU head Dr Vincenzo Cuzzone told local media: “They began showing symptoms after a meal, but the details are still incomplete.
“There was liver failure, followed by a cascade of events, one after another, at extraordinary speed, ultimately leading to multiple organ failure.”
Police have collected food from the family home for laboratory testing.
The family lived in the close-knit town of Pietracatella, where Gianni, an accountant and local councillor, had served two terms as mayor.
Current mayor Antonio Tommasone said: “These are hours of great sorrow for all of us.”
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