Lake San Antonio to reopen following closure due to fish die-off

Monterey County officials say that Lake San Antonio will reopen to the public on Wednesday, July 24.

The announcement comes after an almost two-week closure that was caused by what public health experts are calling "the largest fish die-off in Lake San Antonio history."

Dead bait fish started washing up on the lake's shore on July 5, according to Lake San Antonio staff.

The situation continued to worsen over the next few days, so Parks officials made the decision to close the lake until an investigation was conducted.

The data from that testing has officially come in, and the results are inconclusive.

However, public health officials are confident that a normally occurring algal bloom is responsible for the die-off.

They say that the "prevailing belief" is that a recent heatwave caused a dramatic increase in algae growth which lowered dissolved oxygen levels in the water.

The baitfish suffocated as a result of this lack of oxygen.

“Based on the test data, we can affirmatively state that it [the fish die off] was not caused by bacteria, toxins or pollutants, which could pose a risk to human health. Algal blooms are part of the biological process in bodies of water, unfortunately at times, they can be impactful on the environment," said Chief of parks Bryan Flores.

Although Parks officials are lifting the restriction on Lake San Antonio, they advise lake-goers to use their best judgment and heed cautionary signage.