Mexico struggles amid drought, thousands of fish die as lagoon in north dries up

A lagoon in northern Mexico partly dried up because of a drought which is plaguing the country. Not just the lagoon, but the country's entire state of Chihuahua is facing a severe drought that has depleted its water reservoirs.

The drought has posed risks to the region's agricultural and livestock sectors. The crisis situation led to the death of thousands of fish at the Bustillos Lagoon, near the town of Anahuac in Chihuahua.

The Bustillos lagoon in the Mexican state of Chihuahua has dried up due to record heat and lack of rain. Local authorities said on Wednesday that the water body was below 50 per cent of its normal capacity, which means the pollutants were more concentrated and hazardous to the species that inhabit it.

Images showed dead fishpiling up in the lake bed's cracked mud a week ago. Workers were assigned the job to clean up the decomposing remains amid a foul and unbearable smell in the region. There are also fears that the dead fishes could spread disease.

"There was much less water in the lagoon for the fish to live in so they are dying. When the amount of water decreases, the pollutants become more concentrated, and therefore they also affect the species that live here," said Irma De La Pena head of the ecology department in the city of Cuauhtemoc, as reported by Reuters.

Saul Sausameda, who is the president of the Anahuac community, said as quoted by the news agency, "We can't remedy the fact that more fish are dying, we need rain to fill the lagoon with water again. However, the concern right now is the sanitary issue."

Watch:Climate Change disrupting life in our oceans

Mexico has been battling high temperatures with a dozen cities, including the capital, breaking heat records. Health authorities say 125 people have died in the current hot season, which started mid-March.

Chihuahua state has been particularly heavily struck, with the majority of its land covered in the most extreme levels of dryness. The government data revealed some form of drought afflicting nearly 90 per cent of Mexico, the highest rate since 2011.

(With inputs from agencies)