Published: May 25, 2026
MONROVIA — Liberia’s fisheries authority issued an urgent public health warning Friday after a toxic pufferfish washed ashore at Marshall Beach in Margibi County, cautioning citizens against touching, selling or eating the species, which carries a poison that has no known antidote and can kill.
The National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority said the fish, also known as blowfish or balloonfish, contains tetrodotoxin, an extremely potent toxin concentrated in the animal’s liver, ovaries, intestines and skin. Authorities warned that the poison remains active even after the fish is cooked, smoked or dried, making standard food preparation methods useless against it.
Symptoms of tetrodotoxin poisoning include numbness of the lips and tongue, dizziness, vomiting, paralysis and breathing difficulties. In severe cases, exposure can be fatal.
“Citizens are urged to immediately avoid buying, selling, handling or consuming this fish,” NaFAA said in its statement.
The authority instructed fishermen who accidentally catch the species to return it to the ocean immediately rather than bring it ashore or attempt to sell it. Fishmongers, coastal residents and community members were told to report sightings to the nearest fisheries office or local authorities.
NaFAA also cautioned pet owners to keep animals away from dead or stranded pufferfish on beaches, noting that the toxin remains dangerous after the fish dies.
While Japan allows the controlled preparation of select pufferfish species by specially licensed chefs under strict regulatory oversight, NaFAA said Liberia has no equivalent safety system, making any entry of the fish into local markets a direct threat to public health.
Authorities said monitoring efforts along affected coastal areas are ongoing and urged full public cooperation.
Discussion about this post