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Star-crossed salmon survive spillway's erosion but suffocate
Don Thompson, Associated Press
Updated 8:42 pm, Thursday, May 11, 2017
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A quarter-million hatchery salmon survived the near-collapse of a California dam's spillway this winter, only to suffocate after a pump failed this week, officials said Thursday.
They were among about 5 million baby fall-run Chinook salmon that were rescued in February after tons of mud washed down the Feather River, said California Department of Fish and Wildlife spokesman Andrew Hughan. The erosion came from the failing emergency spillway near the Oroville dam that caused the precautionary evacuation of nearly 200,000 residents.
The salmon were trucked from the Oroville hatchery to a nearby annex fed by well water. An estimated 200,000 to 300,000 of the fish died Wednesday when a faulty wire caused a well pump to fail overnight, leaving the fish without enough fresh water and oxygen.
The fall-run salmon are not considered an endangered species and the deaths are not expected to significantly affect the state's salmon fishery.
More:
http://www.chron.com/news/us/article/Star-crossed-salmon-survive-spillway-s-erosion-11140344.php
