James Ryan, a fisherman of Virginia Beach, captured video of the unusual sight. He said the fish are bunker fish, also known as menhaden. Fishermen say menhaden can be used as bait for crab, or be harvested for fish oil.
Social media posts from area fishermen indicate a commercial boat from Omega Protein was in the area at the time. 10 On Your Side contacted Omega, and company spokesman Ben Landry said an Omega vessel was not and could not have been involved, because the company does not have fishing operations on weekends or holidays.
Environmentalists said such an incident would result from either of two likely causes - commercial fishing, when a crew hauls in more fish that it can store, or poor water quality.
10 On Your Side is awaiting response from the Department of Environmental Quality and the Virginia Marine Resources Commission to find out more about how the fish were killed.
Comment: Snake bites can cause severe swelling, bruising pain at the bite site, internal bleeding and sometimes breathing problems. If treated with antivenom at a hospital, they are rarely fatal. Since snake bite kits have recently been considered an outmoded and dangerous idea and the Sawyer Extractor is not very effective, the best recommendation is to dial 911 and get to a hospital ASAP. Immobilize the bitten limb and keep it below the level of the heart...but get help pronto.