Beribu-ribu Ikan Piranha Makan Orang Terlepas Di Pantai Sao Paulo

Laporan berita ada mengatakan bahawa beribu-ribu ikan piranha dari spesis makan daging atau karnivor telah terlepas di pantai. Sekali imbas, pantai bermaksud lautan air masin. Mungkin ada pembaca yang keliru dan menganggap bahawa bencana dunia sedang berlaku, apabila piranha mungkin akan merebak ke semua bahagian lautan dan pantai-pantai di seluruh dunia. Setelah diselidik beberapa laporan berita dari luar negara, didapati bahawa pantai yang dimaksudkan di sini ialah sebuah sungai. Kehadiran piranha di sungai tersebut boleh dikesan menerusi tompok-tompok darah di permukaan air yang membawa maksud, piranha sudah mendapat mangsanya.

SAO PAULO: Beri-ribu ikan piranha daripada spesies maging memenuhi pantai popular di barat Brazil dan menggigit sehingga putus ibu jari kaki sekurang-kurangnya 15 perenang. Pihak berkuasa di bandar Caceres di Mato Grosso berkata ini adalah kali pertama mereka berdepan masalah piranha di pantai Daveron di sungai Paraguay, selepas ikan agresif itu berkumpul sejak dua minggu lalu. “Penduduk perlu berhati-hati. Jika digigit, mereka perlu keluar segera dari air bagi mengelakkan darah tersebar,” kata anggota bomba Raul Castro de Oliveira, kepada laman web G1 Globo TV. Antara mangsa yang digigit pada Ahad lalu ialah Elson de Campos Pinto, 22. “Saya menyelam dalam sungai dan tiba-tiba saya merasa sakit pada kaki. Saya berlari keluar dari sungai sebaik menyedari kehilangan hujung ibu jari kaki. Saya bimbang akan diserang lagi kerana kaki berdarah,” katanya. Pihak berkuasa bandar berkata pantai itu akan dibuka kerana ia adalah tarikan penting pelancong di rantau Pantanal Brazil, terkenal kerana pelancongan ekologi. Setiap September, Caceres menganjurkan pesta perikanan terbesar, acara seminggu yang menarik 200,000 pelancong untuk memancing dan menikmati konsert. Pegawai keselamatan sudah memasang tanda amaran kepada orang ramai supaya berwaspada jika berenang. – AP/Agensi

SAO PAULO, Brazil - Thousands of flesh-eating piranhas have appeared along a river beach popular with tourists in western Brazil, attacking unwary swimmers. A spokesman for the municipal government of Caceres in Mato Grosso state says at least 15 people have been bitten in the past two weeks off Daveron beach. Nobody has died, but some swimmers have lost toes, and spokesman Gonzaga Junior says others have lost chunks of their legs and ankles. VIDEO: Girl catches piranha in Texas lake Junior says piranhas are common in rivers on the outskirts of the city. But this is the first time they have appeared in waters off the beach inside the city. Large posters have been posted on the beach to warn swimmers about the fish.

SAO PAULO — Thousands of flesh-eating piranhas have infested a river beach popular with tourists in western Brazil and have bitten at least 15 unwary swimmers, authorities said Wednesday. Officials in the city of Caceres in Mato Grosso state said this is the first time they have had a problem with piranhas at the Daveron beach on the Paraguay river, where the aggressive fish began schooling about two weeks ago. "People have got to be very careful. If they're bitten, they've got to get out of the water rapidly and not allow the blood to spread," firefighter Raul Castro de Oliveira told Globo TV's G1 website. Elson de Campos Pinto, 22, was bitten Sunday. "I took a dip in the river and when I stood up, I felt pain in my foot," Pinto told G1. "I saw that I had lost the tip of my toe. I took off running out of the river, afraid that I would be further attacked because of the blood. I'm not going back in for a long time." City officials said the beach will remain open because it's an important draw for tourists in Brazil's Pantanal region, known for its ecotourism. Each September, Caceres hosts what local officials bill as Brazil's biggest fishing festival, a weeklong event that draws 200,000 people for fishing tournaments and concerts. Gonzaga Junior, a spokesman for the city government, said he didn't think the piranha attacks would hurt that event since it is many months away. He tried to put the best face on the problem. "Everyone knows there are piranhas in the region and have always taken the necessary precautions," he said. "What is different this time is that they've appeared where they never appeared before." The city has seen far fewer people than normal use the beach recently because of the piranha attacks. It was deserted Tuesday, a national holiday in Brazil, normally a heavy beach day. Officials have put up large signs warning swimmers about the piranhas, reading in blood red letters: "Attention swimmers. Area at risk of piranha attacks. Danger!" Local fisherman Hildegard Galeno Alves said that when he throws out a fishing net near the beach of late he catches numerous piranhas. "I come here with my kids and I always see blood on the river banks," he told G1. "The worst is that the attacks are in shallow water, next to the bank." Despite making his living off the river, Alves left no doubt about his feelings for the water. "I would never even think of going in there," he said. The Associated Press

Ikan piranha terlepas ke sungai

Thailand Berita Harian, 31 Mei 2004

BANGKOK: Pihak berkuasa Thailand semalam memberi amaran kemungkinan ikan piranha terlepas ke dalam sungai berikutan tindakan pengedar ikan pemakan daging itu membuangnya bagi mengelak dikesan polis. Namun, buat masa ini tiada sebarang tanda-tanda wujudnya ikan yang berasal dari Amerika Selatan itu ditemui dalam sungai atau saliran Bangkok ketika pakar meminta masyarakat bertenang. Tahun lalu ketika pihak berkuasa melancarkan operasi mengesan penjualan spesies binatang eksotik yang tidak didaftarkan, polis merampas 112 ekor piranha dan mengancam mendakwa peniaga terbabit. “Tetapi tiada seorang pun pemilik dan penternak ikan berkenaan ditemui,” kata pegawai polis Kol Wichit Nanthawong. –AFP