Red tide alert lifted in Samar’s Zumarraga Island

TACLOBAN CITY—The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) in Eastern Visayas region has declared the waters off Zumarraga Island in Samar province free from red tide, but warned that Matarinao Bay in Eastern Samar province remains under a shellfish ban due to the continued presence of toxins.

In an advisory on Tuesday, BFAR said laboratory tests showed that shellfish meat samples from Matarinao Bay—covering the coastal towns of General MacArthur, Quinpondan, Hernani and Salcedo—were positive for saxitoxin, a potent toxin associated with red tide.

As a result, all types of shellfish and Acetes sp., locally known as “alamang” or “hipon,” gathered from the bay are not safe for human consumption.