Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam has requested that Dak Nong Province authorities clarify the case in which 37 students suffered health problems after playing with Chinese grenade-shaped toys.
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He also asked the provincial People’s Committee to inform all local schools about the case so that they can take preventive measures. The official also requested that the Ministry of Education and Training issue a warning against such harmful toys, which explode when slapped or stamped on.
The deputy PM made the requests after the recent tests on the samples of such toys showed that they contained two chemicals that are not listed as toxic substances.
As previously reported, 37 students of Chu Van An Primary School in Dak Song District were hospitalized on January 16 after playing with this toy, which exploded and produced a pungent odor.
They suffered from difficulty breathing, chest pain, muscular contractions, headaches, rashes, and bloody feces. Many of the students even passed out. After one day of treatment, all 37 students had recovered and were discharged, but seven of them were taken to Dak Nong General Hospital again on January 19 after they suffered from the same symptoms they experienced several days before. Three of the students were discharged later while the others remained in the hospital for further treatment. Meanwhile, the tests on samples of these toys have shown that they contain sodium bicarbonate and citric acid, which are not listed as banned toxic substances, local police reported. When force is applied to the toy – a rather flat plastic bag with many Chinese characters on it – the two chemicals, each of which is contained in a small pack within the bag, interact to form CO2 that explodes due to high pressure created from the force, the police said.