Durban chemical spill: Residents must not pick up dead fish
Durban residents are urged not to pick up or collect the dead marine life that has washed up on the Umdloti and Umhlanga coastline.
The eThekwini Municipality says the public must refrain from touching the contaminated dead fish, as it could be harmful to humans.
This after the city closed the beaches north of the Umgeni River due to a chemical spill from a Cornubia warehouse that was burnt during the unrest last week.
"The public is advised to refrain from all recreational activities, including fishing or surfing, bait collection and picking up of dead species. Collecting or harvesting of any marine living resource in the area is temporarily prohibited until the cause is determined and the threat has abated. "
READ: Chemical spill forces closure of some Durban beaches
It says a specialised chemical clean-up company has been appointed to clean the spill, including the marine life.
"Authorities are continuously monitoring the area to determine the extent of the impact of the spill. Thus far, there has been fish kill only in the uMhlanga Estuary and beach area and Umdloti beach.
"The fish kill follows the toxic chemical spill into the uMhlanga Estuary after a chemical warehouse was burnt down during this week’s unrest. Based on specialist advice, the river mouth has been left open to help dilute the contamination in the lagoon."
