'Unheard of': Tens of thousands of salmon found dead in B.C. creek as drought conditions persist
CTV
B.C.'s sunny, dry weather is leading to major drought conditions in parts of the province, causing devastating impacts for some wildlife.
B.C.'s sunny, dry weather is leading to major drought conditions in parts of the province, causing devastating impacts for some wildlife.
Video posted to social media recently shows tens of thousands of dead salmon lying at the bottom of a dry creek in Bella Bella.
William Housty, conservation manager with the Heiltsuk Nation, told CTV News Vancouver the sight's "unheard of."
"Nobody … that's living here in the community has ever seen anything like this before," Housty said.
The video was captured last week by German researcher Sarah Mund, who was working in the community, but locals didn't see it until Monday. They said they're devastated as they rely on the watershed for food.
"We all knew that it's been a really dry end to the summer and beginning to the fall, but we really didn't anticipate that things were at the magnitude and the scale they're at right now," Housty said.
Salmon experts say it's a growing problem that won't go away easily.
