3,000 Fish Found Dead In Murfreesboro Pond

3,000 Fish Found Dead In Murfreesboro Pond

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Thousands of fish went belly-up in a local pond, prompting call after call from concerned residents.

Gateway Pond is a city-owned pond that sits adjacent to Middle Tennessee Medical Center, and just off Old Nashville Highway.

Environmental engineers with the city said a maintenance crew spotted the fish early Thursday morning.

"Right away when I heard about it this morning, I suspected a dissolved oxygen issue," said Murfreesboro Environmental Engineer Sam Huddleston. "We did dispatch some field crews out here this morning to do some testing, and we found water quality conditions to be acceptable."

Huddleston said those results made him even more sure about his initial theory.

"That's a common phenomenon in Middle Tennessee lakes, rivers, streams, and ponds," he said. "The warmer the temperature, the less oxygen the water can hold.

Visitors to the pond were caught off-guard by the site and smell that greeted them.

"They were just everywhere, dead," said Harvey Barrett. "I don't know what happened to them. I didn't know there was that many fish in there."

Barrett and his grandkids come to Gateway Pond everyday to feed the ducks and the fish.

"It was really scary at first, because I didn't know what was going on," said his grandson, eleven-year-old Dakota Gilley.

The family watched as clean-up crews arrived, and began netting and hauling away the fish.

Huddleston said they have got no choice but to work quickly.

"Coincidentally, we've got a wedding scheduled here for this weekend," he said. "So it's disappointing for everyone who uses the pond and the park."

Huddleston said there are no immediate dangers or health risks to the public. City employees plan to monitor the pond and its water quality levels over the next few days, just in case.

The price tag for the clean-up and disposal of those dead fish is about $10,000. It's a bill the City of Murfreesboro, and its taxpayers, will be paying for.

Category:

Science & Technology

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[GeorgeTheGreek1978]

Heat? Or was some old secret toxic barrels that might have been placed underground years ago leaking?

[GeorgeTheGreek1978]

Who is dumping toxic things in this pond