Volos Greece: Millions of dead fish pour into port in holiday hotspot with race to stop stench hitting hotels and restaurants
Thousands of dead fish have blanketed a Greek tourist port causing a stench that alarmed residents.
The floating carcasses created a silvery blanket across the port and authorities now face a race against time to collect and remove the tonnes of dead fish before the smell reaches nearby restaurants and hotels. Last year, the fish were displaced from their usual freshwater habitats after flooding forced them into the sea, which experts believe killed them.
Their bodies poured into the port of the central city of Volos this week. Trawlers dragged nets through the water to collect the fish and dumped them in the back of trucks.
City council member Stelios Limnios said: "It spans kilometres. It's not just along the coast, but also in the centre of the Pagasetic Gulf”. Over 24 hours this week, more than 40 tonnes of fish were collected, authorities said, with the operation still ongoing.
Volos mayor Achilleas Beos said the smell was unbearable and blamed the government for not dealing with the fish before they reached the city. Mayor Beos also referred to the decision not to place a net at the mouth of the river leading into Volos, to catch the fish. "They didn't do the obvious, to put a protective net," he said, referring to the government.
The problem was caused by historic floods last year that inundated the Thessaly plain, further north, experts said. When the fish, used to freshwater, met the sea, the saltwater likely killed them. Local prosecutors have ordered an investigation.