The city health office has denied reports spreading in public that a person has died due to the red tide pollution affecting Puerto Princesa Bay.
Dr. Ricardo Panganiban said Monday that their investigation on the supposed victim, a certain Caroline Lopez from Barangay Bagong Silang, showed she died from severe gastrointestinal infection and not Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning (PSP) as reported.
“Walang namatay sa red tide kasi kung red tide ‘yan hindi severe gastrointestinal infection ang ilalagay ng doctor kundi Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning (PSP). Maaaring may nakain siya na contaminated kaya ganoon or probably food poisoning,” he said.
He added that the patient did not show symptoms of paralytic poisoning.
“Iba rin kasi ang symptoms na lumabas. Ang red tide 30 minutes lang ay mararamdaman mo na ang sintomas nyan,” he said.
In addition, he also reminded the public to avoid all the red tide infected shellfish.
On August 9, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) said the red tide warning is still up over Puerto Princesa Bay.
“Mas maganda na hindi na talaga muna kumain. Dapat maging maingat tayo,” he said.
The advisory cautioned locals from gathering and eating all types of shellfish and Acetes sp. or ‘alamang’ gathered from the area as these are not safe for human consumption.
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.
