St. Augustine shoreline is covered with a trail of dead fish

ST. AUGUSTINE BEACH, Fla. — Many residents took to social media to voice their concerns about dead fish washed up on St. Augustine Beach. Hundreds of them washed ashore while crowds tried to enjoy their weekend.

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Some fish were reported to have missing eyes.

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“We got here today, and it was filled with them. I saw at least thirty in a small space. There were kids over here and putting them in a pile,” Brady Boyd said.

The cause is still unclear, however beach goers speculated, blaming it on tides or the nearby boats.

“I think it’s from the shrimping boats. There’s so much live fish and they’re bait well, and the tide rolled it all in. The tide came in for two hours and there was no finish. Then it went to the highest tide and then all the fish came in at the same time,” Jake Stapienski said.

READ: JSO: Man dead after falling into water while night fishing on Jacksonville’s Northside

Many pointed out the unpleasant odor on St. Augustine Beach.

“It’s always clean. There’s always beautiful, clear sand and water and today I’m just surprised at all the dead fish on the shoreline. It’s really weird,” Linda Inglima, a St Augustine resident said.

Residents said they have seen large amounts of trash on the beach after the Memorial Day weekend but nothing like this on St. Augustine Beach.

Florida Fish and Wildlife told Action News Jax they did not receive reports of a fish kill but they are looking into the cause.

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