The alleged ingestion of bitter cassava caused the death of a nine-year-old girl and also affected the health of her six-year-old sister in the state of Anzoátegui.
Local media reported that the minors had consumed the cassava at noon on April 29. Initially, it was thought that the minors had signs of asphyxiation due to suffocation, but it was later discovered that they had ingested the tuber.
The father had gone out to buy food and when he arrived home, he found the minors inside a vehicle parked at home, owned by the minors’ older brother. The mother lives in Anaco.
The 9-year-old girl, identified as Clismar Torres, died at the Luis Razetti hospital in Barcelona. Her body was transferred to perform a necropsy and determine the causes of death. The 6-year-old sister is under medical observation and she told authorities that she did not eat much cassava because she did not like the taste.
With information from Maduradas
