Japanese city issues emergency alert after deadly portions of blowfish accidentally sold

A city in Japan has issued an emergency alert normally reserved for impending natural disasters after potentially deadly portions of blowfish were accidentally sold.

A supermarket in Gamagori mistakenly sold five packages of the fish, known as fugu, without removing the poisonous livers.

Authorities used its emergency loudspeaker system, normally used for earthquakes, to alert residents of the products and urge them to return them immediately.

"We are calling for residents to avoid eating fugu, using Gamagori city's emergency wireless system," official Koji Takayanagi told AFP.

Three packages have been recalled but two are still unaccounted for. Authorities fear the inclusion of the liver in the package could have contaminated the other meat.

No one is believed to have died.

The animal is an expensive delicacy in Japan which requires a license to prepare because of the dangers of mishandling.

The fugu's liver, ovaries and skin are toxic and banned. There are several cases of poisoning each year and, despite not all being lethal, there is no antidote.

The poison, called Tetrodotoxin, hits the nervous system and quickly causes numbness around the mouth, before paralysis and eventually death.