Thursday December 2, 2021
Merced Sun-Star —
Wildlife workers and volunteers scrambled Wednesday to save thousands of fish stranded by an abrupt drop in water levels along a Montana river that’s renowned among anglers for its high-quality trout fishing.
A gate that lets water out of Hebgen Dam just west of Yellowstone National Park malfunctioned and caused flows into the Madison River to plummet early Tuesday morning, according to dam operator NorthWestern Energy.
That left side channels cut off from the main river and some areas with no water.
Photos from the scene showed dead trout and other fish lying on exposed rock beds that normally would be covered with water at this time of year.