Two people have died and 10 others were hospitalized after eating poisonous globefish in Shaanxi Province, officials said yesterday.

　　The fish, known as "hetunyu" in Mandarin, are not common in Shaanxi,swherespeople were apparently unfamiliar with the strict safety procedures required in preparing the fish which has toxic ovaries and liver. Those who were poisoned by the fish in the provincial capital, Xi'an, consumed them on March 19, said a Xi'an public health bureau official. The two deaths occurred about a day later.