PORT TOWNSEND — A Seattle woman who was hospitalized along with six family members Sunday morning after eating toxic mussels harvested from Discovery Bay was improving and under general observation at Jefferson Healthcare, county health officials said Tuesday.
The woman and members of her family, who are not being named, were hospitalized after eating mussels containing the potentially deadly paralytic shellfish poisoning marine biotoxin, or PSP, said Jean Baldwin, Jefferson County Public Health Department director.
The woman still in the hospital in Port Townsend was the only member of the family who remained hospitalized, Baldwin said.
She had been placed on a mechanical ventilator Sunday but was taken off it by Monday, Baldwin said.
The victims, ages 19 to 68, got sick several hours after eating the mussels from a beach that has been closed to recreational shellfish harvesting for high levels of PSP since mid-July
The family harvested the mussels late Saturday night despite warning signs posted at the beach.
Harvesting at night
Baldwin suspects the family did not see the signs in the dark since they were harvesting at 10 p.m.
Baldwin said the family had harvested at Discovery Bay numerous times in the past before the shellfish poison warnings were posted for the bay in mid-July.
PSP can cause numbness and muscle paralysis from 15 minutes to 10 hours after the toxin is consumed. If left untreated, paralysis can lead to death.
A sample taken from a Discovery Bay shellfish two weeks ago showed 7,000 micrograms of PSP.
Health officials close beaches when the level reaches 80 micrograms.
Before collecting shellfish from any beach on the North Olympic Peninsula, Baldwin recommended calling the state biotoxin hotline at 800-562-5632 for the most up-to-date information on beaches closed to recreational shellfish harvesting due to paralytic shellfish poison.
“When in doubt, call the hotline,” Baldwin said. “Don’t just harvest.”
Most North Olympic Peninsula beaches remained closed to recreational shellfish harvesting because of high paralytic shellfish poison levels found in shellfish samples.
Shellfish that accumulate the poison in their flesh include mussels, clams, oysters, scallops and other mollusks.
Marine biotoxins are not destroyed by cooking or freezing.
Commercially harvested shellfish are tested for toxins prior to distribution and are considered safe to eat, the state Department of Health has said.
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Reporter Jeremy Schwartz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5074, or at jschwartz@peninsuladailynews.com.
