Monday, December 19, 2005

Millions of Dead Menhaden on Wrightsville Beach

Locals first saw a few hundred dead menhaden washing up on Wrightsville Beach Sunday afternoon, but as of this afternoon NC DMF officials have estimated that there are now millions of dead fish in the surf. While the menhaden are still washing ashore, the NC DMF is already aggressively investigating possible causes. The dead fish do not appear to have open sores that are typical of chemical spills but nothing has been ruled out at this point. One potential cause that has happened at least once in the last 20 years is that a large school was stuck in a small creek as the tide was falling. Officials said that in the early 1980's a very rare but similar fish kill occurred at Topsail Beach. Officials with the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources collected water and fish samples today and are apparently pushing the analysis through this afternoon. We will continue to keep our eyes on this story as it unfolds and let you know what we are able to find.

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