REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BOGOR -- The number of people with food poisoning, allegedly after eating "tutut" or freshwater snails, in Bogor, West Java, has touched 108, according to the local health office. A sweep by the office' surveillance team showed that the number of victims has reached 108 in five neighborhoods (RT), the head of the Bogor Health Office, Rubaeah, told Antara here on Monday.

Of them, 44 people were in five health centres and 26 were in six hospitals. "The other victims were treated as outpatients, and some others treated at their homes by local paramedics," she said.

The Bogor administration has declared the food poisoning an extraordinary case.

As of Monday, of the 70 hospitalised victims, 39 had returned home, said Rubaeah. "Until this afternoon, 39 victims have returned home, the remaining 31 are still hospitalised." The patients had nausea and were vomiting and the aim was to prevent dehydration, she added.

The authority was waiting for the results of the investigation conducted by the local health laboratory, scheduled to be issued on Tuesday, to confirm the cause of the food poisoning.

Tutut are freshwater snails (Pila ampullacea) usually found in the paddy fields and commonly used to feed ducks. People in some regions of Indonesia, however, consume "tutut" as a snack.

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