Land O' Lakes fish kill ruins families' Easter

LAND O' LAKES (FOX 13) - A subdivision which surrounds Black Lake in Land O' Lakes has seen thousands of dead fish on the banks and floating in the water.  Neighbors are sick of the smell and have no idea what is causing the fish kill. 

Steve Barrow, who lives near the water, says it started about the middle of last week.  The worst of it is over, but a lot of dead fish were still floating Monday.

“A couple of homeowners had family gatherings scheduled for Easter and they canceled them because of the smell,” Barrow said. 

Neighbors are blaming the country for flushing storm drains -- but the county says they haven't done any work in that area.  

Jack Crocetto says the problem has attracted dozens of buzzards that are dropping dead carcasses in his yard. 

“The smell is coming in the house and it’s getting pretty raunchy,” Crocetto said. 

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection took and sent samples to a lab in Tennessee to try and determine a cause.