TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) \u2013 Some environmentalists are concerned after they say hundreds of fish in Lake Munson suddenly died during the Fourth of July weekend, raising questions as to what happened. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I saw at the outfall area were a bunch of dead fish,\u201d Terry Ryan said. He is the president of the Tallahassee Region Environmental Group (TREG). \u201cA bunch of them. Hundreds and hundreds of them and so we became very concerned.\u201d <\/p>\n
He says they filed a report with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and he began collecting water samples to help determine what could\u2019ve caused the fish kill. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a wide range of things we need to consider,\u201d Ryan said. <\/p>\n
Leon County Public Works Director Brent Pell said in a statement the county takes each report about Lake Munson seriously. The statement also pointed out that FWC is \u201carranging for staff to investigate whether the cause was natural environmental conditions, such as low oxygen levels during prolonged high heat, or another factor.\u201d <\/p>\n
Ryan said his organization gathered their own water samples Tuesday morning.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur first initial thought was maybe the oxygen in the lake was not enough and it harmed the existence of, especially, the small fish,\u201d Ryan said. However, he said their preliminary findings indicate the oxygen levels may be okay. <\/p>\n
TREG has been heavily involved in the following and water testing of Lake Munson during the past few years, as they allege harmful chemicals are trapped at the bottom, threatening wildlife and water quality for residents. <\/p>\n
\u201cUnfortunately, the experience we\u2019ve had and we\u2019ve seen over the last several years and decades with Lake Munson is that it is a very highly contaminated lake.\u201d <\/p>\n
He said the water testing of the samples gathered Tuesday should be complete within 48 hours to help determine what may have caused the fish to die.<\/p>\n
To keep up with the latest news as it develops, follow WCTV on Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, Nextdoor<\/a> <\/a>and X<\/a> (Twitter<\/a>).<\/p>\n Have a news tip or see an error? Write to us here<\/a>. Please include the article\u2019s headline in your message.<\/p>\n Be the first to see all the biggest headlines by downloading the WCTV News app. Click here<\/a> to get started.<\/p>\n Copyright 2026 WCTV. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n