6 die after eating puffer fish in Philippines

Six people in Central Philippines' Masbate died after dining on puffer fish, a police report reaching the capital said. A family and their friends in the village of Bolod in Burias Island were having dinner with puffer fish as one of the dishes around 9pm on Thursday, when they suddenly experienced difficulty moving and breathing before eventually dying, a report reaching the Philippine National Police (PNP) headquarters in suburban Quezon City said. Senior Superintendent Heriberto Oltoluit was quoted in the PNP report as saying that fatalities included four men and two women. An autopsy is being performed at the Rural Health Unit of San Pascual in Masbate to ascertain the cause of the deaths. The victims have been identified as Pascual Ello, 77, Sonia dela Cruz, 70, Mahanito Ello, 35, Vicente Hanili, 18, Catalino Esplana, 65, and Eden Esplana, 65. The harmless-looking puffer fish, which got its name from its peculiar reaction of expanding several times its size when it perceives threat, can be found in brackish water areas of the country and the open sea. Its liver contains a gland that secretes a highly lethal poison. There had been incidents of deaths and poisoning from puffer fish eating in the past. Although fishery authorities have advised Filipinos against eating this certain type of fish, folks in far flung regions continue to ignore the warnings. The death of six people in Burias Island from apparent puffer fish poisoning is the most number so far.