A company employee’s unexplained absence from work led to a police rescue after she and her husband were poisoned by wild plants they had picked and eaten themselves.
The incident happened recently in Hefei, Anhui province, China, when a company manager surnamed Wang contacted the police after his employee, Huang, failed to report for work.
Wang said Huang was usually punctual and had never been late, but she did not turn up that day, had not applied for leave and could not be reached by phone. Concerned for the older employee’s safety, he decided to alert the authorities.
Officers from the Heyedi Police Station, under the Shushan District Public Security Bureau, quickly went to Huang’s residential area using the address provided by Wang. With assistance from the property management staff, they identified her home and went inside to check on her.
However, Huang was nowhere to be seen. Her husband was at home, but officers noticed that he appeared confused and was struggling to speak clearly.
The officers split into two groups, with some continuing to speak to Huang’s husband while others worked with property management staff to search the surrounding area.
Huang was eventually found unconscious inside a car in the residential complex’s car park. She did not respond when officers tried to wake her.
Police immediately called emergency services and helped paramedics carry Huang onto an ambulance for urgent medical treatment.
After receiving a call from the police, Huang’s son rushed to the scene and noticed that his father was also behaving unusually. Officers then helped emergency personnel arrange for the husband to be taken to hospital as well.
Investigations later revealed that the couple had suffered poisoning after eating wild plants they had picked themselves. Fortunately, both received timely medical treatment and have since recovered.
The incident also serves as a warning about the dangers of picking wild plants for food. Some poisonous species closely resemble edible wild vegetables, making them difficult to distinguish.
For example, water dropwort is edible, while plants belonging to the Ranunculus genus, commonly known as buttercups, can be poisonous. Certain white-flowered plants may also be edible, while the leaves and flowers of some azalea species are toxic.
Authorities urge the public to avoid eating wild plants unless they can be reliably identified as safe for consumption.
