Hutchinson Leader - Drought claims first victims at Hutchinson dam - Comments

Dead fish clean up is

Matt McMillan — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 10:51:25 -0500

Dead fish clean up is underway at Hutchinson's dam. Truckloads of fish are getting scooped up and put into the back of a waiting dumptruck. Fire hoses are spraying water to corral the fish into a concentrated area to make scooping easier.

I don't know what the answer

just1opinion — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 11:37:13 -0500

I don't know what the answer is but the smell is getting bad by the Main Street bridge. If any visitors stop to see the river, etc, they won't stay there long.

The fish kill is worsening

Matt McMillan — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 11:16:26 -0500

The fish kill is worsening at Hutchinson's dam. Wednesday's storms eluded the northern part of McLeod County. Should anything be done?
What do you think about these ideas?

1. Leave it alone. As the DNR hydrologist said, opening the flood gates will only encourage more fish to swim toward the dam.
2. Add only enough water to fill the pool below the dam.
3. Fill the pool below the dam from a nearby fire hydrant.
4. Let the fish die. They are mostly rough fish anyway, and will probably be at peril when the old dam is removed later this summer.
5. Offer unlimited fishing.
6. Offer free netting of fish for commercial use.

Drought claims first victims at Hutchinson dam

Doug Hanneman — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 11:05:51 -0500

Only a heavy rain storm or a break in a dam could have helped tens of thousands of bullhead and hundreds of carp searching for oxygen this past weekend in the murky, pea-green waters of the Crow River