Eastern Cape education bosses are sending a multi-departmental team to investigate claims of food poisoning at a rural Ngqeleni boarding school.

This after 250 pupils from Ndamase Senior Secondary School in Buntingville village‚ who stay at the school's hostel‚ had to be rushed to hospital Wednesday night after complaining of diarrhoea and headaches while others started vomiting.

Provincial health spokesman Sizwe Kupelo said the children had been given viennas to eat when the problem started. "They were treated and discharged at St Barnabas Hospital in Ntlaza and the Nelson Mandela Academic and Mthatha Regional hospitals in Mthatha."

Meanwhile provincial education spokesman Mali Mtima said they had already instructed the service provider responsible for providing food for the hostel pupils to stop feeding them until an investigation has been conducted.