Environmental disaster in Volos: hundreds of thousands of fish carcasses in the port

According to a report from The Guardian, the fish carcasses littering the harbor form a silvery layer on the surface of the water and emit an extremely strong stench. Stelios Limnios, a member of the city council, expressed his concern about the seriousness of the situation: “The smell spreads for kilometers. Not only along the coast, but also in the middle of Pagasetic Bay.”

Trawlers were deployed to remove the fish carcasses, and more than 40 tons of carcasses have already been collected in the last 24 hours. Achilleas Beos, mayor of Volosz, says the situation is intolerable and blames the government’s delay for the worsening of the problem.

According to experts, the root of the disaster is to be found in last year’s historic floods. The floods refilled a previously drained lake, the receding waters of which forced freshwater fish toward the harbor. However, the fish could not survive in the salt water, which led to a mass die-off.

The disaster has not only environmental but also economic consequences. Local tourism has been badly affected and many businesses are desperate. Dimosthenis Bakoyiannis, the owner of a nearby restaurant, expressed his disappointment: “Closing the barrier now will not help. It’s too late now, the tourist season is over.”