Thousands of dead fish are rotting in a lagoon in Ocean County, creating a stench that residents say has become so bad they are keeping their windows and doors closed. People in the Osborn Island section of Little Egg Harbor Township say dead fish have been appearing in the lagoon over the past c ouple of days, and the problem has progressively worsened. “It’s like going into a dead fish factory that’s been closed for probably about five or six days. It’s atrocious,” Little Egg Harbor Township resident Michael Wuss said. The lagoon is filled with thousands of dead peanut bunker. Residents say it is the fourth and largest fish kill this summer in the local lagoon system off Barnegat Bay. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection is not investigating the die-off, according to a DEP spokesman. The spokesman said this type of fish kill can happen when warm water temperatures, poor circulation and large congregations of fish create low-oxygen conditions that cause the fish to die. “There are other incidents of fish kills throughout lagoon systems in Barnaget Bay, but I would say this is the worst one. And it’s been a repetitive situation in this particular lagoon system,” Save Barnegat Bay Executive Director Britta Forsberg said. The locally based nonprofit Save Barnegat Bay is working with the township and homeowners to find a solution. “We’ve been working closely with the town and the homeowners to try to see if we can come up with a solution, get a grant, do something more meaningful at the mouth of the lagoon. But it is a repeating problem here and ultimately turns into a health hazard,” Forsberg said. Wuss believes dredging is needed to improve water flow in the lagoon. “It really needs to be dredged. There’s not enough water coming in to keep enough oxygen and flow coming in… The whole reason you live down the New Jersey shores to be on the water and when you can’t go out and enjoy the water I mean it’s really bad,” Wuss said. The township said it is unable to remove the dead fish from the lagoon because of insurance reasons. Save Barnegat Bay said a local commercial fisherman has volunteered to help provide some relief for residents. Part of this story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC Philadelphia. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC Philadelphia journalist edited the article for publication. ...read more read less