Mother and Daughter Die of Suspected Food Poisoning After Falling Sick on Christmas Day as Girl’s Father is Also Hospitalized

A mother and her teenage daughter have died after falling seriously ill in what authorities believe may be a case of food poisoning in Italy, while the girl’s father remains hospitalized, according to reports.

Antonella Di Ielsi, 50, and her 15-year-old daughter, Sara Di Vita, died within hours of each other at Cardarelli Hospital in Campobasso after becoming sick on Dec. 25, Italian outlets Corriere della Sera and L’Unione Sarda reported.

The pair reportedly became ill after eating a fish-based Christmas meal and went to the emergency room twice. They were discharged with a diagnosis of food poisoning and gastroenteritis, according to the outlets.

Sara returned to the hospital on Saturday, Dec. 27, after her condition worsened. She was admitted to intensive care and died at about 11 p.m. local time, Corriere della Sera reported. Her mother was hospitalized the same evening and died the next day at 11 a.m., according to the outlet.

Sara’s father, former town mayor Gianni Di Vita, was also admitted to intensive care at Spallanzani Hospital. The 55-year-old reportedly experienced similar symptoms, though less severe, according to reports.

The family is said to have hosted dinner with relatives on Dec. 24. Another daughter, who did not develop symptoms, reportedly did not eat with the rest of the family, per L’Unione Sarda.

Vincenzo Cuzzone, head of the intensive care unit at Cardarelli Hospital, told L’Unione Sarda that the patients suffered “multiorgan failure,” adding that it was difficult to identify precisely which meal may have triggered the illness.

The Campobasso Flying Squad, the local investigative police unit, is investigating the incident.

According to Corriere della Sera, investigators returned to the family’s home and seized food items — including mussels, cuttlefish, cod, clams and mushrooms — which were sent to the Molise Zooprophylactic Institute in Rome for testing and to determine whether poisoning occurred. Investigators are also reviewing what the family ate starting Dec. 23, including pasta with tomato sauce.

Corriere della Sera also reported that five doctors at Cardarelli Hospital and two on-call doctors are under investigation in connection with the deaths. They face allegations including multiple manslaughter, negligent personal injury, and medical malpractice, the outlet said.

Investigators are additionally examining a possible “accidental contamination of flour with rat poison,” after learning that a flour mill owned by Gianni Di Vita was recently disinfected for rats, Corriere della Sera reported.