State officials set emergency closure for shellfish harvesting in Drayton Harbor

Washington state officials declared an emergency closure Thursday for the harvest of clams, oysters and mussels from Drayton Harbor near Blaine.

The emergency closure was issued by the Washington State Department of Health following a link in the consumption of raw oysters Feb. 13 and Feb. 20 to several illnesses in the area.

Symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramps and fatigue – usually within one to two days after consuming raw shellfish. Symptoms are consistent with a norovirus-like illness, according to the state Department of Health .

In addition to the closure on shellfish harvesting, the DOH has issued a recall for all oysters and clams harvested Feb. 13-23 from Drayton Harbor, including oysters harvested by the Drayton Harbor Oyster Co. and Manila clams harvested by the Lummi Indian Business Council.

The oysters were shipped to areas within the state, while the Manila clams were shipped to Arizona, California, Nevada, New York, Oregon and Canada, according to the DOH.

“All distributors said they have contacted these retail establishments, and it is likely all shellstock has been consumed,” the DOH said in the recall notice.

Whatcom County officials advise people who have purchased the shellfish but not yet consumed them to throw them out.

Harvesting of shellfish, both recreational and commercial, is expected to reopen March 24, according to a news update from Whatcom County.

The Drayton Harbor Oyster Co. restaurant plans to remain open but will not serve any raw or cooked product from Drayton Harbor during the closure. The restaurant will be sourcing its oysters from other farms further south, owner and oyster farmer Mark Seymour told the Bellingham Herald in an interview.

“It’s unfortunate. It’s out of our control,” Seymour said.

Drayton Harbor underwent years of pollution cleanup efforts from 1999 to 2004, and year-round oyster harvests were approved in 2016, according to the Bellingham Visitors Center.

“This bay has a long history of issues and has a great story for its recovery from those issues,” Seymour said. “A comment that my dad made – he is a co-owner as well, Steve Seymour – was, ‘We can’t take our foot off the gas.’ It’s cool we can celebrate, but we can’t celebrate and just say, ‘Hey, we solved the problem.’ ”