Mass Animal Deaths Are Back: Millions of Dead Sardines Float Ashore in California

Updated, 3/9: We were starting to get worried that it had been too long since we saw a sign of the impending apocalypse.

But then millions of dead sardines washed ashore early Tuesday morning in Redondo Beach, Ca. A foot-deep layer of dead fish flooded the King Harbor Marina, just south of Los Angeles.

(More on TIME.com: See if the death of 200 cows confirms a biblical prophecy)

Redondo Beach police Sergeant Phil Keenan hypothesized to Reuters that the fish had exhausted the oxygen supply by congregating in too small a space. “The issue now is cleanup because we have tons and tons of dead fish rotting and purifying, which obviously creates hazardous material,” Keenan said. “We’re in the process of figuring out what we’re going to do.”

There’s added time pressure to the cleanup, as temperatures are expected to rise into the 70s later this week.

(More on TIME.com: See the top 10 strange mass animal deaths)

Update, 3/9: We’ve changed references from “anchovies” to “sardines,” after later reports clarified what type of fish floated ashore.

View the original article here