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BFAR warns of red tide in 2 Pangasinan towns


The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) has advised the public to refrain from harvesting, trading, and eating shellfish from the waters of Anda and Bolinao in Pangasinan due to red tide. "All types of shellfish gathered from infected areas are not safe for human consumption," BFAR officer-in-charge Gil Adora said. “Fish, squids, shrimps, and crabs are safe for human consumption provided that they are fresh and washed thoroughly and internal organs such as gills and intestines are removed before cooking," Adora added. The bureau official also raised the alarm against shellfish from Dumanquillas Bay in Zamboanga del Sur, Murcielagos Bay in Zamboanga del Norte and Misamis Occidental, and Sorsogon Bay in Sorsogon, which remain unsafe for human consumption. Eating shellfish products with red tide toxins – which form during long dry spells – can cause a possibly fatal illness called paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP). Persons suffering from PSP will experience such symptoms as the tingling of lips and tongue, minutes after eating poisonous shellfish and developing within two hours. Symptoms may progress to other areas of the body depending on the amount of toxins a person has ingested: first, a tingling of fingers and toes, then loss of control of arms and legs, followed by difficulty in breathing. Paralysis of chest and abdominal muscles may also take place. With the paralysis of the muscles that aid a person’s breathing, death can come in as rapidly as two hours. — PE/VS, GMA News

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