Around 56,000 farmed salmon escaped from a Marine Harvest net pen in Nærøy, Trøndelag, Norway.
The escape occurred on 5 February, after a net containing 180,000 salmon was damaged during a maintenance procedure at its farm in Arnøyfjorden. Marine Harvest notified Norway's Directorate of Fisheries, which sent divers to the site. The escaped fish weigh around two kilos (4.41 pounds) each, according to Norway Today.
Marine Harvest is paying fishermen NOK 300 (USD 38, EUR 31) each for escaped fish.
The escaped salmon have been given medication to treat intestinal worms, according to Marine Harvest. Marine Harvest said it is investigating the incident, in cooperation with the Directorate of Fisheries and suppliers.
Marine Harvest is already receiving criticism about its escape, Norway Today reported.
“In all of Norway, a total of 10,000 salmon escaped in 2017. This incident is five times as many,” fish manager Anton Rikstad of the county governor in Trøndelag to Namdalsavisa, told the newspaper.
