JEDDAH, 31 January — The Jeddah Municipality recently confiscated 19 tons of contaminated fish from some expatriate workers at the fish market. The fish was later sent for laboratory tests to make sure it was not spreading infectious diseases.
The Fisheries Office in Jeddah, an affiliate of the Ministry of Water and Agriculture, earlier reported that certain varieties of sea fish had been infected by chemicals that might affect the nervous system.
Laboratory tests conducted by the office also proved that some fishermen had used insecticides for fishing.
Municipal officials are questioning the expatriate workers who were selling the fish. They will be handed over to the concerned authorities to be dealt with according to Saudi regulations.
Municipality officials confiscated the fish during an inspection of the market on Monday, when they checked 6,996 cold storages and trucks used to transport and store fish.
The municipality is planning to set up a police post inside the fish market to keep track of health and safety violators and unauthorized sellers. It will also coordinate with the Coast Guard to prevent fishing in polluted waters.
A municipality official told Arab News that its squads inspect the fish market during the morning hours to ensure the fish is suitable for consumption and that the sellers themselves are clean.
