Dozens of Fish Mysteriously Die in Flowers Bank
Residents of the Belize River Valley community of Flowers Bank are raising concerns after dozens of fish were found dead or gasping for air along the river this week. Community leaders have alerted authorities, prompting officials from the Department of the Environment, NEMO and WASA to investigate the cause of the fish kill, as residents await answers and are being urged to avoid using river water and consuming fish from the affected area until test results are available. We spoke with Flowers Bank Village Chair, Kisha Flowers earlier today for more details.
On the Phone: Kisha Flowers, Chair, Flowers Bank Village
“ Yesterday start seeing a couple of fishes coming up, gasping for air. So we automatically we realized something was wrong. This morning we went to the riverside and saw a couple of the fishes start floating next to the riverbank. We concerned what’s in the water because many, people, people bathe by the river. People catch the fish fi eat, you know? People sometimes drink the water, so people wash with the water. People use the water like to pump and wash out their pens and different thing, no?”
Britney Gordon
“Are you guys issuing a advisory to your community members maybe to just hold back on using the water for now or what?”
On the Phone: Kisha Flowers
“Yes, we did that from yesterday. To make they know stay alert, you know, pay attention. We did monitor everything. Nobody di like, eat no fish, nobody di drink no water, nobody did bathe that river, nothing like that.”
We reached out to the Department of the Environment which explained confirmed that they officials have visited the area and collected water quality samples both at the site of the fish kill and upstream. While test results are still being analyzed and could take several days, preliminary findings indicate low dissolved oxygen levels in the water.
Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.
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Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.