Sad news has come from Mentawai, West Sumatra. Dozens of Mentawai residents suffered food poisoning after eating turtle meat during a traditional feast (punen) in Taileleu Village, West Siberut District, on Sunday (18/2/18). Of the dozens of people who were poisoned, three died, 16 victims are still undergoing intensive care at the Taileleu Village Health Center and two others at the West Siberut Health Center.
Lahmuddin Siregar, Head of the Mentawai Islands Health Office, said the incident started when the community hunted turtles in the western coastal waters for the punen event on Saturday (17/2/18).
Source: Mongabay
According to the hunting results, they caught a large turtle weighing around 50-60 kilograms and measuring 1.5 meters long. They cooked the turtle by boiling it, and then shared it together.
After eating the turtle meat, dozens of people from four tribes experienced symptoms of poisoning such as dizziness, vomiting, shortness of breath, a slimy throat, and itching. Two days later, one victim was declared dead, followed by two others the next day. According to data from the Mentawai Health Office, the three deceased were one 66-year-old and two toddlers, aged 4.5 years and 2.5 years.
Poisoned victims are receiving intensive care at the health center. Photo: Mentawai Health Office
Based on the Mentawai Health Office data, at least 95 people were affected after consuming the turtle meat.
“It is suspected that the victims were poisoned after consuming turtle meat, as evidenced by six cats dying shortly after eating leftover turtle meat,” said Lahmuddin via phone.
According to locals, they found 150 hardened turtle eggs inside the turtle’s body. This indicates that the turtle was in its nesting phase, but the Health Office faced difficulties in checking the samples as they were no longer available.
“The samples are gone; maybe we can only check the shell. Previously, in 2013, a poisoning test on turtle meat showed positive arsenic content,” he said.
Currently, conditions are starting to stabilize, but the health center has asked the public to refrain from eating turtles again. “Conditions are stabilizing, medical personnel and medicine supplies are sufficient.”
Moving forward, they will continue to urge the Mentawai community not to consume turtles anymore because, besides being toxic, turtles are also a rare species protected by law.
Harfiandri Damanhuri, a turtle researcher from Bung Hatta University, Padang, said that the southwest coast, where the poisoning occurred, is a turtle nesting site. Looking at their cycle, this is indeed the nesting and laying period, which typically happens from November to July.
He mentioned that a turtle reaching 1.5 meters in length can be considered an old turtle (more than 50 years old), already in the breeding phase.
Poisoned victims receiving health care at the village health center. Dozens of residents in Mentawai were poisoned after consuming turtle, and three people died. Photo: Mentawai Health Office/ Mongabay Indonesia
He said that the migration direction of the southwest coast turtles is unknown, but genetically, the hatchlings in the Pariaman waters are linked to those in Aceh and Mentawai.
“Looking at the genetics of turtles in Mentawai waters, they enter the Andaman cycle, traveling across the Indian Ocean. The Indian Ocean has many industries, so there is a lot of waste disposal. This is consumed by turtles and enters their bodies.”
These heavy metals, he continued, accumulate in the turtle’s body, continuously increasing without decreasing. The older the turtle, the higher the risk of toxins because it contains more poison. “This is what humans consume.”
This turtle meat poisoning case in Mentawai that caused fatalities is not the first time. According to the Sumatra West Turtle Data and Information Center at Bung Hatta University, since 2005, there have been 37 deaths caused by consuming turtles.
The latest incident occurred on March 24, 2013, in Sao Village, Sipora Island, resulting in 148 people being hospitalized, with four fatalities. Among the deceased, there was an 11-month-old baby who was poisoned through breast milk.
According to Harfiandri’s research, the cause of the turtle poisoning in Mentawai is the arsenic content in the meat.
“Based on research, the toxin levels in turtles are higher than in fish,” he said.
The turtle meat contains heavy metals, such as cadmium, three times higher than fish, and mercury levels are ten times higher. The turtle also contains arsenic, persistent organic pollutants, and various pesticides. It also has microbes that cause tuberculosis and salmonella.
“This is a consequence of the turtle’s ability to travel across the ocean. Their range can reach 10,000 kilometers.”
The hunted turtle was posted on Facebook on February 18, 2018. Young turtle eggs are seen inside the turtle’s stomach. Photo: from Silainge Mentawai Facebook account
Turtles that come to Mentawai to nest usually come because of the clear and clean waters. After laying eggs on the 300 small islands in Mentawai, they return to their journeys. The turtle’s range can extend to Africa or Mexico.
During this journey, turtles may consume heavy metals from algae or jellyfish, their main food. Algae are the type of aquatic plants that absorb the most heavy metals. The turtles consumed in Mentawai are generally over 50 years old.
Almost all turtles today contain toxins, unlike 50 years ago when turtles lived up to 100 years.
“Turtles are toxin-resistant. But if consumed by humans, it can be fatal. Even in remote areas of Mentawai, there have been cases of breast cancer, such as in Tiop Village. This tumor is caused by the heavy metals contained in turtle meat. Toxins can also enter breast milk.”
Regarding the turtle hunting tradition along the southwest coast of Mentawai, Harfiandri said that it is still commonly practiced by the community.
In this village, he said, there is a house that stores around 26 turtle shells hanging on the wall. From the type, it is believed to be green turtles, with an average length of over one meter. This house is also where they discuss the results of their hunting.
Turtle catch posted on Facebook
In a different location, at Bataeit Beach, West Siberut District, a young man from Mentawai with the Facebook account name Silainge Mentawai posted photos of a turtle catch. From the photo shared on February 18, it shows a turtle being carried by a wooden boat. Dozens of turtle eggs are placed in a plastic container. Unfortunately, inside the dissected turtle’s body, there are hundreds of turtle yolks that resemble chicken eggs.
This post received various comments from netizens, including a comment from the Head of BPSPL Padang, Muhammad Yusuf.
Yusuf said that turtles are protected animals. “This is protected, it could be illegal if you continue to consume them,” he wrote in the comment section. As of the time of this report, there was no response from the account owner.
Main photo: (illustration) Turtle for consumption in Mentawai a while ago. Photo: BPSPL Documentation
Eggs from a turtle caught by locals. Photo: from the Facebook account Silainge Mentawai Mongabay
By Vinolia [Padang] on 25 February 2018
