GOVERNMENT officials on Yap are scrambling to identify the cause of dead fish and discoloured sea water, which threaten the atoll’s food security.
Governor Francis Itimai has ordered an immediate investigation after reports from Lamotrek and other atolls that dead fish had been found floating in the lagoons.
Lamotrek is an atoll in Yap State of the Federated States of Micronesia. It is roughly one square kilometre in area with a population of just under 400 people.
There were corresponding reports of sea water turning a reddish-brown colour. There are no indications at this time of the cause of the deaths or discolouration.
However, residents have been warned not to eat the fish and report all changes in sea colour to the local authorities.
Photographs and videos of the dead fish and discoloured water have been circulated on social media, causing widespread alarm in Yap.
The atoll is about 450km south-east of Guam.
VC: Lance Luther
