Red tide invades 2 Pangasinan towns

BAGUIO CITY — The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) Region 1 is cautioning the public as the coastal waters of two towns in Pangasinan are said to be positive for red tide toxins, or saxitoxin.

In a letter, BFAR Region 1 director Rosario Segundina P. Gaerlan informed Pangasinan Governor Ramon Guico III that as of 10 April 2025, the latest laboratory analysis from the shellfish meat samples collected from the sea waters of the municipalities of Bolinao and Anda is positive for red tide toxins.

Gaerlan requested the help of the provincial government of Pangasinan in the intensive dissemination of information to keep the public informed of the situation.

The Pangasinan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office issued a red tide alert informing the public of the red tide-affected waters of the said two towns.

BFAR is advising the public to refrain from gathering, selling, and eating all types of fish and acetes sibugae or alamang or hipon from the coastal waters of Bolinao and Anda. The bureau stressed that this is a precautionary measure to safeguard lives while waiting for the issuance of a national shellfish bulletin or advisory.