19 people including nine children die after eating sea turtle

At least 19 people, including nine children, have died in Madagascar of food poisoning after consuming the meat of a sea turtle, a protected animal, AFP learned Thursday (March 18th) from corroborating sources.

Thirty-four people have been hospitalized in Vatomandry, in the east of the island, since Monday, ten of whom have died, the Food and Health Safety Control Agency announced, without specifying whether children were among the dead.

Nine other children died at their homes after consuming the flesh of the same turtle, said the governor of the region. The consumption of sea turtles and 24 other species of fish is strongly discouraged by the health authorities of the Big Island during the hot season.

These species feed on algae which, from November to March, is toxic to those who eat the flesh. Each year, in the coastal areas of Madagascar, about fifty families are poisoned and deaths are regularly to be deplored. In January 2018, eight people had died of poisoning in the north of the country, and eight others the previous month.