Overview
- Volunteers and Chattahoochee Riverkeeper first documented the die-off on Friday when thousands of dead fish were found along about 20 miles of river from Peachtree Creek downstream.
- Riverkeeper field monitoring shows dissolved oxygen levels crashed during the event and have begun to recover, but laboratory tests to confirm precise causes are still pending.
- Investigators say the crash likely followed an intense downpour that dumped roughly three inches of rain in an hour and flushed warm, polluted stormwater and suspected sewer discharges into an unusually low-flow river.
- The City of Atlanta Department of Watershed Management, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, and Chattahoochee Riverkeeper have deployed crews to collect samples, advise the public to avoid the affected stretch to West Point Lake, and coordinate next steps.
- Officials and advocates warn of short- and long-term effects on the food chain, fishing and river recreation, and note the episode highlights how drought, urban runoff, aging sewer infrastructure, and extreme short‑duration storms stress the river system.