Shock as new images emerge showing thousands of dead fish at Salford Quays

Distressing new images have emerged today showing thousands of dead fish floating on the water in and around Salford Quays.

The Manchester Evening News first revealed the tragedy on Tuesday, with the Environment Agency confirming an investigation was underway.

A spokesman confirmed it has been dealing with multiple reports of 'fish in distress' and said it's believed to have been caused by 'a 'natural event caused by high temperatures and low atmospheric pressure as a result of thunderstorms, causing low dissolved oxygen levels'.

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Now, 24 hours on, fresh photographs sent to us capture the scale of the issue.

One person enjoying the sun at the Quays sent the M.E.N. a series of new photographs from the scene today, as others shared similar, distressing images on social media.

The cyclist said: "Just been on a cycle ride to Media City, and I was shocked to see the amount of dead fish in the water and along the ship canal."

As reported, one expert on rivers, Prof Jamie Woodward, tweeted that he believed the the deaths were due to a 'huge flush of sewage combined with failure of aeration system'. However, United Utilities have ruled out sewage as a possible cause.

The M.E.N. understands investigations from the water company’s officers have ruled out sewage as a cause, as the firm says it has ‘no assets that discharge directly into the Quays’.

A spokesperson added that ‘we have not discharged up or downstream’ of the area affected. It's also understood there is no aeration system in operation at Central Bay, or the Manchester Ship Canal.

Now, an Environment Agency spokesperson has named a possible cause of the devastation. They said: “We have been