"Lummi Nation Declares State Of Emergency After Salmon Spill"

"The Lummi Nation declared a state of emergency Thursday after a weekend spill of Atlantic salmon from a fish farm in San Juan waters.

“The tribe has not received confirmation that the Atlantic salmon spill has been contained, so we have to assume that the invasive fish continues to spill into these waters, putting the spawning grounds for native salmon species at risk,” Timothy Ballew II, chairman of the Lummi Indian Business Council, said in a statement.

Lummi Nation officials said that the state reported over 300,000 Atlantic salmon escaped at Cooke Aquaculture Pacific's farm off Cypress Island.

Initial reports said 4,000 to 5,000 fish had escaped following damage to net pens. But now a spokesperson for the company says they don't know the full number and that there are "Very, very much more," saying the farm "totally collapsed," according to the Seattle Times.

The pens held 305,000 fish."

Travis Pittman and Kelsey Caulfield report for KING 5 (Seattle) August 24, 2017.