Mass fish die-off still unexplained

April 25, 2016 - 09:00

A dead whale found on a beach in central Thừa Thiên-Huế yesterday morning has provided clear evidence of an environmental incident taking place in the coastal stretch of four central provinces.
 

A dead whale found on a beach in central Thừa Thiên-Huế yesterday morning has provided clear evidence of an environmental incident taking place in the coastal stretch of four central provinces.— Photo tuoitre.vn

THỪA THIÊN - HUẾ — A dead whale found on a beach in central Thừa Thiên-Huế yesterday morning has provided clear evidence of an environmental incident taking place in the coastal stretch of four central provinces. 

For the past week, locals in the provinces of Hà Tĩnh, Quảng Bình, Quảng Trị and Thừa Thiên-Huế have found dead fish en mass on the local beaches. The first discovery of a mass fish death event was recorded in Hà Tĩnh, and later neighbouring provinces reported similar occurrences. 

All along the coast of Thừa Thiên-Huế dead fish were found. tens of fish farms built along the coast that use ocean water for aquaculture in Lăng Cô Bay have also been effected.  

Nguyễn Huỳnh Kỳ, who runs a fish farm in Lăng Cô Town, told a Việt Nam News reporter that two thirds of his fish had died without any symptoms of disease. He suspects that the ocean water was somehow poisoned.

Meanwhile, fishermen along coast of Phú Vang and Quảng Điền said they had returned to shore with empty nets from recent fishing trips in local waters.

Officials from the ministries of the environment, agriculture and public security have arrived at the affected areas to investigate the incident. — VNS

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