Samar: The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) on Wednesday confirmed the presence of toxic red tide in the coastal water of Zumarraga, Samar, based on examination by the agency’s national laboratory. This prompted BFAR to raise a shellfish ban for the seawaters of Zumarraga where collecting, selling, or eating any type of shellfish, including small shrimps, are not advised.
According to Philippines News Agency, the coastal water, along with three other bays in the country, is now included in the national shellfish bulletin or areas with confirmed presence of red tide found through laboratory examination of shellfish meat samples. In the region, also included in the latest national bulletin is Matarinao Bay in General MacArthur, Quinapondan, Hernani, and Salcedo towns in Eastern Samar. It means that both shellfish and seawater samples gathered in the area tested positive for red tide.
Earlier, a local red tide warning was raised in Cancabato Bay in Tacloban City and Irong-Irong Bay in Catbalogan City in Samar province. Seawater samples collected in these bays were found to have toxins. Fish, squid, shrimp, and crabs gathered in these areas are safe for human consumption if they are fresh and washed thoroughly and the internal organs, such as gills and intestines, are removed before cooking.
BFAR said, ‘To safeguard human lives, we are issuing this warning as precautionary advice to the public to refrain from gathering, selling, and eating all types of shellfish and Acetes sp., locally known as alamang or hipon, from these bays.’ The seawater condition can cause paralytic shellfish poisoning and death, it warned.
Nationwide, there are only four bays included in the latest national shellfish bulletin. The other two are Dumanquilas Bay in Zamboanga del Sur and the coastal waters of Tungawan in Zamboanga Sibugay. BFAR said the presence of red tide cysts in the region’s bays triggered the recurrence of the phenomenon. Frequent rains may cause the runoff of soil sediments rich in organic matter that fertilize the red tide cyst.
