Comments:  This is a hoax, and a dangerous one at that. According to health agencies throughout Asia, there is no such thing as a "zulican" virus. The fish products that are normally consumed in countries affected by the December 2004 tsunami are perfectly safe to eat, they say. Authorities are concerned because seafood sales have dropped drastically in devastated areas as a result of rumors to the contrary, affecting the livelihoods of fishermen and raising the possibility that some will go hungry for fear of eating contaminated fish.

A variant warns that fish have become contaminated because they have fed on the corpses of tsunami victims washed out to sea. This, too, has been denied by health experts. "Scientifically, there's nothing to prove that fish caught after the tsunami cannot be consumed," Sri Lanka's health minister told the Associated Press. Nevertheless, fish markets in that country have reported as much as a 90% drop in sales.

The rumors were first spread through text messages within days of the tsunami disaster, and more recently via forwarded email. It became an out-and-out hoax when messages specifically referencing the nonexistent "zulican" virus went into circulation.

The origin of the accompanying photographs is unknown.

Sources and further reading:

On Alleged Zulican Virus
Philippines Department of Health press release, 4 January 2005

Experts Allay Fears, Say No 'Zulican' Virus in Fish
Economic Times (India), 6 January 2005

Sri Lankans Stop Eating Fish
Associated Press, 2 January 2005

The Big Asian Seafood Scare
Asia One (Singapore), 9 January 2005

Rs.500 mn lost in 12 days Due to Zulican Virus Rumour in Fish
Express Newsline, 7 January 2005

EDITORIAL: Shudders of Revulsion
New Straits Times, 17 January 2005

Last updated: 01/19/05