Three Californians had a not-so-fun-gi experience after allegedly buying deadly mushrooms from a food truck earlier this month.
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The trio claim they purchased the mushrooms from a produce van in Salinas, a farming community in central California. The group, described as young and healthy, unknowingly consumed Amanita phalloides, commonly referred to as “death caps,” according to the Ventura County Star.
They closely resemble familiar edible mushrooms like button and cremini varieties commonly found in grocery stores. However, consuming just 30 grams of these mushrooms can be lethal.
The poisoning took place on New Year’s Day, and by the following day, all three individuals experienced severe symptoms, including nausea, vomiting, and explosive diarrhea.
“In that phase [of poisoning], people get profoundly dehydrated and can develop some kidney injury,” Dr Erica Locke, a physician at the Salinas Valley Health Emergency Department, explained. “Then after about 24 hours of nausea, vomiting, and that cholera-like diarrhea, people start to feel a little bit better, what’s called the senescent period, where they start to recover, and that is exactly what happened to these people.”
They didn’t go to the hospital until their symptoms returned. That’s when tests showed their livers were in the early stages of damage. Doctors are optimistic that two of them, who are still in treatment, will recover. Meanwhile, the third, who ate fewer mushrooms, has already recovered.
“Had they come in during the first 24 hours, we would have hopefully been able to avoid some of the liver toxicity,” Dr. Locke pointed out.
Police ‘Strongly Believe’ the Patients May Have Foraged the Poisonous Mushrooms Themselves
Patients reported to doctors that they got the mushrooms from a produce truck parked outside a grocery store.
However, the Salinas Police Department revealed that the patients provided conflicting accounts, including details of a hike to Fremont’s Peak. Authorities “strongly believe” the individuals may have foraged the mushrooms themselves during the trip.
It seems likely that more than three people were affected after buying the mushrooms from the food truck. However, the Salinas police found no leads on the truck where the three patients said they had bought the mushrooms.
The police report confirmed that no additional cases of illness from mushroom poisoning have been reported in Salinas. Authorities concluded that there is no ongoing threat to the general public.