March 8th, 2011
01:35 PM ET

Millions of dead anchovies float to surface in Redondo Beach

Enough anchovies to top much of the world’s pizza and Caesar salads have floated lifelessly to the surface in Redondo Beach, California's King Harbor, according to a local newspaper.

Officials say millions of the pungent, oily fish are covering the sea bottom in the harbor. They began rising to the surface Tuesday morning, the Daily Breeze in Torrance, outside Los Angeles, reported.

“We need to get rid of them,” Sgt. Phil Keenan of the Redondo Beach Police Department told the paper. “This is going to create a terrible pollution and public health issue if we don't.”

Fire, police and public works officials have yet to cite a definite cause, but Keenan said the fish appear to have died from lack of oxygen.

There were no red tides (oxygen-depleting algae blooms) or other obvious phenomena that could have caused the mass deaths, the paper reported.

“Yesterday, everything looked absolutely normal,” Walter Waite, who lives at the harbor, told the newspaper. “This morning when I got up, there were millions and millions of them floating everywhere.”

The temperature in Southern California is expected to climb into the 70s Tuesday, exacerbating the urgency of removing the scads of 6-inch fish scattered throughout the harbor.

Read CNN's full coverage of the dead anchovies in a California harbor
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Filed under: Animals • California • Environment • Nature • U.S.
soundoff (493 Responses)
  1. E5Mouse

    Scoop them up, and freeze them. They make great fishing bait!

    March 8, 2011 at 8:11 pm | Report abuse |
  2. thebeerdude

    It's a sign! I'm just not sure of what.

    March 8, 2011 at 8:13 pm | Report abuse |
  3. STEVE D

    Some local Fishing Boat Captain, most likely droped a Live Electrial Line into the water and ZAPED those little guys
    for Chum Bait. Or maybe Mr Crabs & Sponge Bob ran out of Crabby Patty Mix and hired Planketon to do the dirty
    work.

    March 8, 2011 at 8:14 pm | Report abuse |
  4. RemoRyder

    Koch Brothers Strike again with a little help from Eric Cantor and the Cuban Rubio

    March 8, 2011 at 8:19 pm | Report abuse |
  5. JGG

    I find the video very strange – where are all the seagulls that would normally be devouring these anchovies. I would expect there to be a feathery feeding frenzy going on – but no. Seems strange to me.

    March 8, 2011 at 8:20 pm | Report abuse |
  6. Jason

    Its GLOBAL WARMING!!!....lol, sorry could not resist.

    March 8, 2011 at 8:24 pm | Report abuse |
  7. Jason

    Was Michele Obama in the area?

    March 8, 2011 at 8:27 pm | Report abuse |
  8. hasinbottyaudiesauder

    no way man, these fish were killed by underwater seismic activity, California is fixing to pull an Atlantis on us.

    March 8, 2011 at 8:30 pm | Report abuse |
    • Mary

      I was thinking that could be one of the possibities , LOL

      March 8, 2011 at 9:10 pm | Report abuse |
  9. FloridaDave

    I have an aunt Jovie !

    March 8, 2011 at 8:41 pm | Report abuse |
  10. Shaan Phillips

    these fish are a sign this world is coming to end after the May 21, 2011 judgement day you may not like it but that is just the way it is going to happen.

    March 8, 2011 at 8:45 pm | Report abuse |
    • publius enigma

      Get back to me when the sea actually turns to blood as predicted. Until then you are just twisting scripture to cause fear.

      March 8, 2011 at 9:00 pm | Report abuse |
    • grega

      I haven't heard anything about May 21st but I can tell you one thing there is NOT going to be no rapture that's a bunch of bull****.Anybody that believes that is crazy and will be here for the end of days just like everyone else on this earth.

      March 8, 2011 at 10:10 pm | Report abuse |
  11. Curious

    Look, I'm not saying it's a sign of anything just yet, but the frequency of these animal deaths seem too unusual to simply write off as coincidence.

    March 8, 2011 at 8:46 pm | Report abuse |
  12. EIGHT

    UH.has anyone ever visited the beach on the weekend at the end of the day? Thousands of pieces of garbage leftover from beachgoers litter the entire stretch from Manhattan Beach to Redondo beach. It doesn't take a scientist to figure out all the plastic and garbage will kill the ocean. HELLO? No ocean people. No people. K? R U lazy litterbugs listening?

    March 8, 2011 at 8:48 pm | Report abuse |
  13. publius enigma

    So many fish dying that it causes a severe health problem for the area and a cleanup so massive that no one knows how to get started. Yea right, happens all the time.

    March 8, 2011 at 8:58 pm | Report abuse |
  14. Jobs

    Making light of terrible events every day... This is CNN.

    March 8, 2011 at 9:04 pm | Report abuse |
  15. publius enigma

    The got scared to death from.... GODZILLA!

    March 8, 2011 at 9:08 pm | Report abuse |
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