Three members of a Lodi family are in intensive care in a San Francisco
The "Death Cap mushrooms are among the world's most lethal. They are starting to sprout in the Bay Area because of the recent rains, presenting a risk to immigrants who mistake them for harmless varieties found in their native countries. Even experienced mushroom gatherers have been fooled into believing death caps to be edible.
We don't know much about these three people except that they are all in the intensive care unit.
The big danger they face is liver damage, which if left untreated could lead to death. "Eating wild mushrooms such as the death cap can result in severe and rapid liver failure, requiring liver transplantation or a lengthy hospitalization," said Dr. Carrie Frenette, a liver specialist who is treating the patients.
According to California Pacific, the death rate for people who consume the mushrooms is around 10 percent.
One person died last year in California after eating death caps, according to the state Poison Control System. In January, a family of three survived a poisoning after they returned from a mushroom hunt in Mount Tamalpais State Park and cooked the fungi in soup.
The snow-white mushrooms have dusted green caps and appear meaty.
The red flag of their toxicity is the pure white gills underneath the cap.
