Vaalweekblad received the below information and photos about sick fish in the Vaal River earlier this week from a concerned reader, Juanita Dekkers, and posted it on the newspaper’s Facebook group. Juanita’s post achieved a post reach of over 52,000, which shows that this is a matter of great concern to our readers and environmentalists.

Juanita Dekkers wrote:

What is going on in the Vaal River, especially in the Deneysville area? The fish, various species, are very, very sick. The blood seeps through their scales and fins. Where can we report it? Our anglers are very worried. We suspect there is a big mistake in the ecosystem. I just want to point out that all the fish have been released again.

This is not the first time that Vaal River and Vaal Dam anglers have informed Vaalweekblad about this situation. Several people have contacted us recently with similar sightings and we have also already done reports in the newspaper about them. We also brought Juanita’s photos to the attention of the environmental pressure group Save the Vaal Environment (SAVE).

Following Juanita’s observation, another concerned reader, André Pietersen, writes: I would like to appeal to all anglers who catch such sick fish to take pictures and send them to me. I contacted Dr. Mariska Laubscher at the University of Cape Town and showed her the photos. Dr. Laubscher and our State Veterinarian, Dr. Guguletho, is now going to investigate the matter.

However, they need everyone’s help to obtain information in terms of exactly where and when such sick fish are caught. Please help me to help them. Please send me your photos to 079 971 0728.

Vaalweekblad believes that our local anglers and those concerned about the environment would like to help in getting answers about the alarming situation. Please send your photos to André if you come across fish with such wounds. Vaalweekblad will maintain contact with him and the experts investigating it, and give proper feedback as soon as there are answers.