Dead Fish Pile Up by Thousands Along Texas’ Trinity River

TYLER, Tex. — Thousands of dead fish turned up along a 50-mile stretch of the Trinity River, possibly because recent rains had stirred up sewage sediment on the river bottom, suffocating the fish, a wildlife expert said Tuesday.

The major fish kill last weekend is being studied by state and federal officials, who are still counting the dead.

The kill will likely surpass a series of 1984 kills that wiped out 171,000 fish, fishery biologist Allen Forsage of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department said.

Roy Erwin, a resource contaminant specialist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said that his agency is also studying potential contaminants from all sources, including urban runoff and sewage spills.