At least 385 people have been admitted to Jaffna Teaching Hospital with eye injuries sustained at a temple festival in the Pandatharippu area of Jaffna, the hospital’s director said on Friday night — more than double the figure reported earlier in the day.
The injuries followed a festival held on Thursday (20) at a Murugan temple in Piranpatru, in the Sandilipay divisional secretariat area. Patients presented with eye pain, irritation and difficulty opening their eyes.
Admissions rose sharply through Friday. Daily Mirror reported 157 admissions at 5.07pm, citing Jaffna Teaching Hospital Director Dr. Sathyamoorthy — 58 men, 44 women and 55 children. Ada Derana’s Tamil service put the figure at 235 by 6.18pm, reporting that a special bus had been sent to bring the affected to hospital, and at 385 by 10.05pm. It said a high proportion of those affected were children and women.
Accounts of the cause differ
The two newsrooms describe the cause differently. Daily Mirror attributed the injuries to excessively bright electric lights used as decorations on the temple premises. Ada Derana Tamil reported that heavy fireworks were set off during the festival and that high-powered laser beams were used during a musical performance, and that both contributed to the eye damage.
Police have removed a number of high-powered, Chinese-manufactured electric lights that had been installed at the temple premises, according to Ada Derana Tamil. The seized lights are undergoing examination to establish their power output, their suitability for use, and whether they are approved or prohibited for public use.
The Jaffna District Secretary and the Sandilipay Divisional Secretary have advised anyone who attended the temple on Thursday to go to Jaffna Teaching Hospital for an eye examination.
Update: Fireworks organiser remanded, 21 still in hospital
The owner of the company that organised the fireworks display at the Pandatharippu festival has been remanded, Hiru News reported on Saturday. The suspect was produced before the Mallakam Magistrate and ordered held until September 4. Police said a full investigation into the incident is continuing.
It is the first arrest reported in the case. Hiru also gave the first indication of how serious the injuries are: 21 of those admitted were still receiving inpatient treatment as of Saturday, according to Jaffna Teaching Hospital Director Dr. Thangamuthu Sathyamoorthy — the same official who gave the earlier admission figures.
The remand concerns the fireworks display rather than the lighting. Police have pursued both strands: the lamps seized from the temple premises remain under technical examination, and no finding has been announced on them.
Doctors point to possible UV exposure
Daily Mirror reported on Saturday that a senior eye doctor considered the symptoms consistent with photokeratitis — an acute injury to the eye’s surface caused by excessive ultraviolet exposure, sometimes described as sunburn of the eye. It can cause severe pain, watering, a gritty sensation and light sensitivity, and symptoms may appear several hours after exposure, which would match the delayed presentations.
That assessment was based on the initial group of 157 patients rather than the larger figure reported later. The newspaper said photographs showed large glass lamps with arc-tube assemblies resembling high-intensity discharge fittings, some types of which can emit UV radiation unless protective glass or filters are fitted, but cautioned that the type, wattage and specifications could not be confirmed from photographs.
Investigators are expected to establish the lamps’ power and UV output, whether protective components were in place, and how long and at what distance people were exposed, before any cause is confirmed. Police have not established that the lamps caused the injuries, and the results of the technical examination have not been released.
