As a casualty of extreme weather conditions, dead fish began to appear on the surface of Lake Elsinore and wash up on shore Thursday, Aug. 3, city officials said.

City employees deployed to beaches and on the water to collect and dispose of the carcasses as quickly as possible, City Manager Grant Yates said.

He described the dying fish as 98 percent shad minnows and carp. The cleanup activity is expected to continue Friday.

Yates said the fish kill was relatively minor compared to some of the episodes in previous years when large numbers of bass and other sport fish were affected.

The incident in progress now is similar to what happened in August 2015 when a die-off occurred during a series of days when temperatures reached well over 100 degrees.

Officials say the health of Southern Californias largest natural, freshwater lake remains fragile because of ongoing high heat and algae blooms. Lake overseers believe a sudden drop this week in the lakes oxygen levels resulting from heat, overcast skies and a thunder storm sparked the die-off.

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Fish die-off in progress at Lake Elsinore - Press-Enterprise