HARTVILLE, Ohio (AP) — Dishwashing detergent created foam that killed hundreds of fish a couple weeks ago in a northeastern Ohio waterway, according to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
The fish were found last Monday in the Tuscarawas River in northern Stark and southern Summit counties.
An investigation determined that someone dumped the detergent on the ground near a storm drain in Hartville, an EPA spokesperson said. Rain then pushed it into the river, where it affected 8 miles (13 kilometers) of river and tributaries from Lake Township to Springfield Township.
The EPA used six pumps to aerate the water,
It’s not yet known who dumped the detergent or why it was done.
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Featured image: The Ohio River running between Ohio and West Virginia. (Photo by Stihler Craig, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service via wikimedia.org)