Officials warn against foraging potentially dangerous mushrooms.

At least 13 people in Monterey County have been sickened after consuming what are believed to be highly toxic death cap mushrooms since Thanksgiving week, prompting local officials to sound an alarm about the dangerous fungi on Dec. 2. A few days later, the California Department of Public Health reported 21 cases in the state identified by the California Poison Control System, some resulting in severe liver damage with one death reported.

After the clusters of cases in Monterey County and the Bay Area, officials are advising the public statewide to forgo foraging altogether this year. With recent fall rains, the mushrooms are proliferating in forests, parks and backyards, particularly around oaks and other hardwood trees.

“Because the death cap can easily be mistaken for edible, safe mushrooms, we advise the public not to forage for wild mushrooms at all this high-risk season,” Dr. Erica Pan, CDPH director and state public health officer, said in a statement.

Five of the 13 in Monterey County were treated at Natividad Medical Center, with two hospital admissions, both since released.

Of the eight remaining patients seen by emergency doctors at Salinas Valley Health, several developed signs of liver damage and even fulminant liver failure, which includes brain dysfunction in someone with a previously healthy liver.

At least two people who consumed the mushrooms showed no symptoms. The remaining six required hospital admission, according to Dr. Kimberly Moulton, an emergency physician at SVH. To protect patient privacy, Moulton described their ages as starting from pediatric age through middle age. As of Dec. 9, some of the six were making a recovery after intensive treatment, some were still hospitalized.

“It’s expected when we see that many cases that someone will require a liver transplant, and it would not be unexpected to see a death,” she says.

The fatality rate is at least 10 percent.

People who become ill can feel like they’re improving and delay seeking treatment, while serious damage is actually underway, Moulton warns. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and watery diarrhea.

“If people do develop symptoms they need to seek treatment right away,” she says.

Washing, cooking or freezing the mushrooms does not eliminate the toxins.

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