Fishermen in Nyanza are staring at an uncertain future following the mass death of fish in Lake Victoria.
Reports of fish dying in different parts of the lake have been reported since last year and the trend is already causing panic among fisherfolk over the possibility of losing their source of livelihood.
Experts believe climate change is what makes fish unable to survive in certain areas when water conditions change.
The latest cases of mass death of fish were reported in Kendu Bay town on Monday, April 17 where fishermen woke up to scenes of the delicacy being washed ashore.
Hundreds of juvenile tilapia were floating on water.
Some were alive and gasping for oxygen in water while others had died.
Witnesses said the pier in the town had birds hovering over it.
This is what attracted the attention of residents who wanted to know what had attracted the birds.
Upon inspection, they discovered that the birds were feasting on fish which were floating on water.
Mr Abdala Ondiegi, a resident of Kendu Bay said some people were collecting the fish.
No one knows where exactly they were taking them.
But some could be sold at the market and end up on plates as lunch or dinner.
“Some fish were swimming but not in the usual way. It is as if they were struggling. It was an opportunity for some people to easily get them out of the water,” he said.
Rachuonyo North Beach Management Units (BMU) chairman Ibrahim Kasera said fish had died in many beaches in the region since Thursday last week.
“Fish died along the shore of Lake Victoria on various beaches in the sub-county. Some portrayed signs of suffocation before they died,” he said.
According to the BMU official, fish were jumping out of the water.
Some had their bodies in the water but their mouth was exposed to the surface.
Fishermen called on Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) and other agencies to intervene in the matter.
Mr Kasera said the agencies should undertake research that can reveal what kills the fish.
“Their research will provide solutions to the problem. This can help rescue the lives of other fish in the lake,” he said.
Homa Bay County Fisheries Director George Okoth said enquiries into the latest incident are ongoing.
He said he has been briefed about the case and he has sent a team of fisheries officers to the affected beaches to conduct further investigations.
“We will get a comprehensive report after the officers are back,” Mr Okoth said.
