200,000 gallons of molasses spill in Hawaiian harbour

Saturday, September 14, 2013, 6:48 PM -

Thousands of fish are washing up dead in Hawaii after a molasses spill in Honolulu Harbor.

Officials are now worried about possible shark attacks as the carcasses may begin to attract hungry predators.

As molasses is sticky and heavy it sunk to the bottom of the ocean, displacing the thin layer of oxygen available to bottom dwellers, essentially suffocating all the living species that inhabited the area.

The company responsible has apologized but were unable to offer any further solutions as they "didn't plan for the possibility of a spill." A previous molasses spill in 2003 was also caused by the same molasses company and shipped by the same shipping company.

The Hawaii State Department of Health says a leak in a molasses pipeline could have caused about 233,000 gallons of molasses to spill. It has deployed three boats to remove the thousands of dead carcasses from the ocean and is posting signs asking people to stay out of the water.

The dark cloud of molasses is moving with the tides and currents from the harbour into Keehi Lagoon, where it is expected to dissipate into the ocean.

Molasses spill in Hawaii destroys ocean habitats, draws sharks to area where humans surf an... http://t.co/siZEzN4bJd pic.twitter.com/TGoNmFIDU9

— William Otten (@theotten) September 14, 2013