Lake Grady fish kill due to pre-Irma draining
Hurricane Irma caused fish kills in many Florida lakes, some due to temperature inversions that robbed the water of oxygen. Lake Grady has suffered a fish kill that apparently resulted from a different cause: draining of the lake prior to Hurricane Irma to prevent flooding of adjacent properties. The incident has been reported to the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission's (FWC) fish kill hotline, which reported it to the USF Water Institute. FWC does not clean up fish kills. That is the responsibility of the lake owner, which may be a city, county, or private landowners.
A good article about the issue of public vs. private ponds/lakes can be found in a recent issue of Florida Water Resources Journal. The article begins on page 38.
The FWC Fish Kill hotline is 1-800-636-0511, or visit FWC’s website.