Cape Town - People in Cape Town complained of a foul “fishy” smell wafting through the city centre on Thursday.
At first this was suspected to be the result of a natural phenomenon known as the “red tide” that occurs when microscopic algae rapidly reproduce to cause “blooms”, but upon inspection the City confirmed this was not the cause.
Even while on their lunch breaks, people were seen scrunching up their noses, looking around and even sniffing themselves to locate the source of the peculiar smell, but to no avail, it remained a mystery.
Deputy mayor and spatial planning and environment Mayco member, Eddie Andrews, said this was not an unusual occurrence when the north-wester blows and that the foul smell experienced was not the result of an algae bloom.
When red tides occur in an around Cape Town, Andrews said they were visible. When the “red tide” hit the coastline around Strand a few weeks ago, the water at Strand Beach transformed into a reddish-brown colour, along with an unmissable fishy smell in the air.
A City official happened to be out in Table Bay yesterday morning and confirmed there was no evidence of a “red tide”.
Andrews said: “Currently there is a north-wester blowing. With the city bowl being located downwind of the Cape Town port under NW conditions, the fishy smell may be attributed to the fishing industry operating out of the port. A visit to the port itself will confirm the same smell.”
In February, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) issued a red alert over the “red tide” which caused five tons of West Coast rock lobster to be washed ashore on the West Coast in just one day.
Department spokesperson Albi Modise previously said: “As is often the case in summer and late summer, there has been a build-up of large red tides in the greater St. Helena Bay region over the past few weeks.
“These blooms of phytoplankton presently extend 50-60 kilometres, dominating waters in the vicinity of Elands Bay, Lambert’s Bay, and Doring Bay.”
kristin.engel@inl.co.za