Friday August 12, 2022
Los Angeles Times —
About 21,000 fish, including sturgeon and endangered chinook salmon, died of chlorine exposure in a “catastrophic failure” at a UC Davis research facility, university officials said Thursday.
The loss was discovered Tuesday morning in an outdoor facility with multiple large tanks at the UC Davis Center for Aquatic Biology and Aquaculture, said Andy Fell, a university spokesperson. The facility is overseen by a professional staff, and the fish had been bred on-site.
Rescue attempts were undertaken, but only a “handful” of fish survived, Fell said.
“It’s a devastating loss for the site,” he said.
University officials are investigating the cause of the failure and reviewing processes at other UC Davis aquatic research facilities where there is the potential for chlorine exposure. UC Davis will also provide support for those who worked with the fish, Fell said.