Fish ‘deliberately poisoned’ in attack at aquatics centre
MORE than 20 fish have been killed after they were doused with bleach in a “deliberate” attack at an aquatics store.
Staff frantically battled to save them after a woman raised the alarm when she stepped on one of the fish which had jumped out of its tank.
Workers then found one of their most expensive tanks had a strong chemical smell and the area was evacuated.
The discus and plecos fish at World of Water, in Studley Grange Garden Centre near Swindon, Wilts, could not be saved.
A spokesman described it as “pointless cruelty”, confirming that they will upgrade security and police had been contacted.
The woman who raised the alarm said staff looked “distressed”, adding: “My partner was talking to the sales assistant about which fish we’d like and that’s when I stood on one.
“I was with my toddler at the time, and he was pointing at it. I honestly thought it was one of his toys at first, but then I saw blood and realised it was a pleco. We all quickly realised that the fish were trying to escape the tank and that’s why it was on the floor. Then someone said it smelt strongly of bleach and everyone was told to leave the room.
“I was horrified that someone could do that and you could see the distress and horror in the faces of staff there. They were devastated by it, they really care about their fish.”
The World of Water spokesman said of the incident on Saturday “a number of fish appeared to be in distress” and the “strong chemical smell in the area suggested that this was a deliberate act”. They added: “World of Water prides itself that the wellbeing of all the livestock is, by far, our primary concern and the staff have been very upset by this act of completely pointless cruelty.
“We tend to have a very close relationship with our customers owing to our shared enthusiasm for fish keeping and nobody can understand why someone would do this.”