{
  "id": 11031112,
  "title": "No link between watermelon, diphtheria, FCT dismisses fake health post",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/30/no-link-between-watermelon-diphtheria-fct-dismisses-fake-health-post",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-30T21:20:52.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Punch",
    "slug": "punch",
    "url": "https://punchng.com/no-link-between-watermelon-diphtheria-fct-dismisses-fake-health-post/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "The Federal Capital Territory Health Services and Environment Secretariat has debunked a viral social media report claiming that a resident of Abuja contracted diphtheria after eating sliced watermelon. The Mandate Secretary of the Secretariat, Dr Adedolapo Fasawe, stated that field investigations conducted by the FCT Public Health Department and the Abuja Municipal Area Council found no evidence to support the claim. A multidisciplinary Rapid Response Team visited the location mentioned in the post, but found that the address did not match the estate's road designations, and the estate management could not identify any resident matching the description provided. The investigation did not establish any link between watermelon and diphtheria, emphasizing that the claim was debunked specifically for the viral report.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Punch Nigeria",
        "title": "No link between watermelon, diphtheria, FCT dismisses fake health post",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/30/no-link-between-watermelon-diphtheria-fct-dismisses-fake-health-post-11033681",
        "published": "2026-09-30T21:34:52.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}