With Australia’s Heat Wave, Millions of Dead Fish Wash Up on the Shore

Authorities and experts in southeastern Australia claim that the recent floods and hot weather are to blame for a fish die-off that has resulted in millions of fish washing up dead on the shore.

Menindee, a town in New South Wales’ Outback region, received complaints from locals about a foul stench coming from the dead fish.

“The stink was terrible. I nearly had to put a mask on,” said local nature photographer Geoff Looney.

“I was worried about my own health. That water right in the top comes down to our pumping station for the town. People north of Menindee say there’s cod and perch floating down the river everywhere,” he said.

Fish need more oxygen because of the warmer weather, which makes the problem worse, according to the Department of Primary Industries, which stated that the fish deaths were probably brought on by low oxygen levels as floodwaters receded.

For this week’s huge cleaning, police have built an emergency operations center in Menindee.

The first priority, according to State Emergency Operations Controller Peter Thurtell, is to ensure that citizens have access to safe water.

“There is no need for community concern as the initial assessment has determined multiple viable solutions to maintain water supply to the Menindee township and surrounds,” he said.

To increase the amount of dissolved oxygen in the area, state authorities also began to distribute water of better quality when it was feasible.

“We’ve just sort of started to clean up, and then this has happened, and that’s sort of you’re walking around in a dried-up mess and then you’re smelling this putrid smell. It’s a terrible smell and horrible to see all those dead fish,” said Jan Dening, a Menindee resident.

On the Darling-Baaka River, there have reportedly been widespread fish deaths in recent weeks. While there have been several reports of dead fish being found downstream toward Pooncarie, close to the boundaries of South Australia and Victoria states, tens of thousands of fish were discovered at the same location in late February.

Extreme dry conditions in late 2018 and early 2019 led to massive fish kills on the Menindee River, with locals estimating millions of deaths.