A tragic incident has unfolded in California, where a woman has tragically lost all four of her limbs. This devastating outcome is the result of her contracting a bacterial infection, reportedly stemming from the consumption of undercooked tilapia fish that had been contaminated with a lethal strain of bacteria, according to accounts from her friends.

Laura Barajas, a 40-year-old mother, underwent the lifesaving surgery on Thursday after a months-long stay in the hospital, the New York Post reports.

“It’s just been really heavy on all of us. It’s terrible. This could’ve happened to any of us,” Ms Barajas’ friend Anna Messina told KRON.

Messina said Barajas became sick after eating the fish that she had purchased at a local market in San Jose and made for herself at home.

“She almost lost her life. She was on a respirator,” Ms Messina said.

“They put her into a medically induced coma. Her fingers were black, her feet were black, and her bottom lip was black. She had complete sepsis, and her kidneys were failing,” she added.

Ms Messina has stated that Barajas contracted Vibrio vulnificus, a potentially deadly bacterium commonly found in raw seafood and seawater. This underscores the critical importance of properly preparing and handling seafood to avoid such severe health risks.

“The ways you can get infected with this bacteria are, one, you can eat something that’s contaminated with it [and] the other way is by having a cut or tattoo exposed to water in which this bug lives,” UCSF Infectious Disease Expert Dr. Natasha Spottiswoode told KRON.