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Woensdag, 19 Augustus 2026 | Tel: 021 910 6500 | e-pos: nuus@tygerburger.co.za | Website: www.tygerburger.co.za
PUBLIC URGED NOT TO EAT WASHED UP DEAD FISH NOR TO FEED THEM TO PETS
Scores of fish wash ashore
Dead sardines line the shore at Lagoon Beach following the latest mass fish mortality event.
KAILIN DANIELS
T
KAILINDANIELS@NOVUSMEDIA.CO.ZA
he discovery of hundreds of dead sardines washing up along beaches in the Melkbosstrand and Milnerton areas have taken a new turn, with laboratory tests confirming the presence of pilchard herpesvirus (PHV) in affected fish.
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IN WC HOLDS STEADY PAGE 2
The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) confirmed that laboratory sequencing detected PHV genetic material in sampled sardines collected along the West Coast. However, the department stressed that scientists have not yet established whether the virus itself is responsible for the mass mortality.
LAB TESTS FIND PILCHARD HERPES IN SAMPLES FROM DEAD SHOALS The latest findings come after fresh reports of dead sardines washing ashore at Milnerton, Sunset Beach, Lagoon Beach and Melkbosstrand. TygerBurger visited several of
BLOUBERGSTRAND SURFER DIES AFTER COLLAPSING PAGE 3
the affected beaches last week and saw scores of dead fish washed up along the shoreline. Dead sardines were also reported at Milnerton Lagoon on Friday 14 August.
VIRUS FOUND IN HEALTHY AND DEAD FISH According to DFFE, PHV was detected in both dead sardines and, at lower levels, in some apparently healthy fish collected from the West Coast. The finding suggests the presence of the virus alone may not be enough to explain the scale of the deaths. TO PAGE 2
KILLARNEY ROAD MARKINGS REFRESHED PAGE 6