Possible river poisoning at Yambou: Forestry issues urgent Crayfish alert

By Demion McTair. Updated 7:33 a.m., Thursday, May 27, 2021, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4).

Dead Crayfish at Yambou. Photo: Forestry Department.

The Department of Forestry is asking members of the public not to consume Crayfish from the Yambou River at this time.

In a Facebook post today (May 27), the department said that on May 24, it received reports about a possible river poisoning in the area of the Yambou pass.

“On Tuesday 25th May 2021, the Law Compliance and Enforcement Unit (LCEU) visited the area to do an assessment. Upon reaching the area the team observed that along the river (about 600M) there were dead aquatic life,” the department said.

The department said it seized nearly 20lbs of crayfish from residents of Glenside Mesopotamia.

The cause of the poisoning is unknown, the department said.

“We urge the public not to consume Crayfish they got from that area. Or any other area along the the Yambou river,” the Forestry Department added.

Crayfish seized from residents of Glenside, Mesopotamia. Photo: Forestry Department.

River poisoning is an illegal river fishing technique used to draw out aquatic life from hidden places in a river so that they are more easily caught.

The technique, however, leaves a trail of death for the remainder of the uncaught aquatic life in the path of the poisonous substance.

The Forestry Department falls under the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries.