Why 80 People Were Hospitalised in Bhiwandi After Eating From Popular Food Stall 'Famous Shawarma'

Around 80 people have been hospitalised in a suspected case of severe food poisoning after consuming street food from a roadside stall in Bhiwandi town, located in Maharashtra's Thane district. The patients began experiencing acute symptoms, including vomiting, diarrhoea, and intense abdominal pain, leading to a surge in admissions at the Indira Gandhi Memorial (IGM) Hospital starting Thursday evening.

Medical professionals confirmed that while dozens of individuals required emergency medical interventions, all affected patients are currently undergoing treatment and are reported to be in stable condition. Food Poisoning in Thane: 38 Children Hospitalised After Consuming Mid-Day Meal at Kalwa Sahyadri School (Watch Videos).

Onset of Symptoms and Surge in Hospital Admissions

According to local authorities, the health complications began after citizens consumed popular street food items, including chicken shawarma, pizza, and falooda, from an establishment named "Famous Shawarma" in the Khandupada area. The initial consumption occurred on the evening of Wednesday, June 17, with symptoms manifesting rapidly by the following morning. Vinayak Gaikwad, Senior Police Inspector of Shanti Nagar police station, detailed the timeline of the medical emergency: "After 6 PM on June 17, people ate shawarma and pizza from a popular food stall named 'Famous Shawarma' in Khandupada. The next morning, they began experiencing vomiting, diarrhoea, and stomach pain."

Inspector Gaikwad added that many individuals initially sought preliminary care at local clinics, but were forced to seek emergency admission at IGM Hospital when their conditions failed to improve. The influx of patients escalated late Thursday night, June 18, with an additional 24 patients admitted in a single block.

Demographics and Medical Response at IGM Hospital

The mass poisoning has impacted a broad demographic across local neighbourhoods, including entire families who had carried packaged food parcels home from the stall. Madhuri Panhare, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) at IGM Hospital, clarified the scale of the hospital's current containment operation, noting that the patient count had climbed to 80 individuals. "The patients include both men and women and among the 80, eight children have been admitted to the pediatric ward so far. One or two days back, they had eaten some food items from a particular shop in Bhiwandi like shawarma, pizza and faluda. All of them have almost similar symptoms like that of stomach ache, vomiting and diarrhoea. Though, some of them have fever," she added.

The hospital administration has deployed emergency protocols, putting all 80 admitted individuals on intravenous (IV) drips and administering targeted antibiotic courses. "All the patients are stable, no one is critical," CMO Panhare confirmed. Thane Woman Dies by Suicide 48 Days After Marriage; Family Claims Husband Used CCTV Cameras To Track Her.

Police Investigation and Sample Testing

Upon receiving alerts from the municipal medical facility, law enforcement officers from the Shanti Nagar police station visited the wards to document victim statements and establish the point of source. A formal investigation has been launched into the food preparation and storage conditions at the Khandupada stall. To isolate the specific biological or chemical contaminant responsible for the outbreak, hospital laboratory technicians have gathered vomit and stool samples from the patients for microbiological culture testing, while food safety officials work to analyse residue samples from the commercial site.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 19, 2026 11:10 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).