HONOLULU — September 12, 2013 — Thousands of fish are expected to die in Honolulu waters after a leaky pipe caused 1,400 tons of molasses to ooze into the harbor and kill marine life, state officials said.
Hundreds of fish have been collected so far, the state Department of Health said in a statement Wednesday. Many more fish are expected to die and thousands will likely be collected, it said.
The fish are dying because the high concentration of molasses is making it difficult for them to breathe, said department spokeswoman Janice Okubo. Television footage shows some fish sticking their mouths out of the water.
The department has warned people to stay out of the area because the dead fish could attract sharks and other predators like barracuda.
The brown, sugary substance spilled Monday from a pipe used to load molasses from storage tanks to ships sailing to California. The shipping company, Matson Navigation Co., repaired the hole and the pipe stopped leaking Tuesday morning, spokesman Jeff Hull said.
As much as 233,000 gallons of molasses leaked into the harbor, Matson said. That's equivalent to what would fill about seven rail cars or about one-third of an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
Read the full story by the Associated Press at the New Jersey Herald