Over 200 tonnes of dead fish have been recovered from West Lake. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has urged Hanoi authorities to find out the cause of the incident.

Fish dead in the West Lake

According to Vietnam National Committee of Search and Rescue, military forces and Hanoi’s agencies had collected 76 tonnes of dead fish in the West Lake by late October 3, much higher than the reported figure of around 10 tonnes by October 2. The figure has risen to 200 tonnes as of the morning of October 4.

The mass fish deaths started to be seen in the lake from October 1, leaving the lake surface covered with a layer of floating dead fish.

A preliminary report from the Hanoi People’s Committee indicated that oxygen depletion was partially responsible for the mass death fish in the West Lake.

In an early attempt to fix the situation on Sunday, Hanoi authorities instructed the Hanoi Urban Environment Ltd, Co to install 40 aeration devices to provide oxygen to save fish in the lake.

Health department staff were dispatched to spray chemicals to sterilise areas around the lake. Environmental police also took samples of the dead fish and lake water to conduct tests.