Shellfish still toxic — don’t eat them

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

A public health warning not to collect and eat shellfish remains in place for the East Coast and Wairoa.

The long-standing warning remains in place for the area from Cape Runaway down to Wairoa River mouth. People are warned not to collect or consume shellfish from this area as paralytic shellfish toxins are still at elevated levels.

The warning has been lifted for the  Hawke’s Bay area south of Wairoa.

Symptoms of paralytic shellfish poisoning usually appear within 10 minutes to three hours of eating and may include:

• numbness and tingling (a prickly feeling) around the mouth, face, hands and feet

• difficulty swallowing or breathing

• dizziness and headache

• nausea and vomiting

• diarrhoea, paralysis and respiratory failure

• and, in severe cases, death.

Pāua, crab and crayfish may still be eaten if the gut has been completely removed prior to cooking, as toxins accumulate in the gut. If the gut is not removed, its contents could contaminate the meat during the cooking process.

Finfish are not included in this public health warning, but the advice is for people to gut the fish and discard the liver before cooking.