Da Nang officials swim in the sea to ease pollution rumor

By Nguyen Dong   April 30, 2016 | 01:29 am PT
Head of environment department in Da Nang City and other government officers went for a swim in the sea this morning, affirming citizens that the water is not polluted amid mysterious mass fish deaths.

On April 30, officers and employees of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment in Da Nang have gone for a swim in the sea to counter rumors about sea pollution that stem from the recent mass fish deaths along Vietnam’s central coast.

"Test results of water samples in Da Nang show no problem so we, as well as everyone else, can go for a swim without worrying. The government will test water samples regularly and publicize the results," Nguyen Dieu, director of the department, told VnExpress.

Nguyen Dieu (first from left) and other Da Nangs environment department officials swim at Pham Van Dong beach in the morning of April 30.

Nguyen Dieu (first from left) and other Da Nang’s environment department officials swim at Pham Van Dong beach in the morning of April 30.

To claim that Da Nang’s waters are safe, Tran Chi Cuong, deputy director of the Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism of Da Nang, also went swimming on April 29, saying that he still maintains this habit regularly.

Cuong said the number of domestic tourists going to Da Nang on vacation this year has decreased by about six percent, but foreign visitors increased by 28 percent.

He recommends visitors to enjoy fresh seafood and said the authorities are still monitoring vessels to prevent fishermen from fetching fish from mass fish death areas back to Da Nang for sale.

Since last week, dead fish have started to appear along the shoreline in Da Nang, sparking fears that the phenomenon has reached the city’s waters. On April 27, through examining the water samples taken from the sea, the local authorities have announced that the indicators such as oxygen in water, total solid substance and mercury level are all within permissible levels.

They confirmed that the seawater is “safe for sports and recreation activities”. The Environmental Engineering Center of Da Nang has put some fish, shrimps and crabs in seawater samples taken from the local beaches and they were still fine after a day.   

 
 
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