It’s forecast to be one of the hottest days of the year, yet one of the province’s most popular beaches is closed to the public for the time being.

People are being asked not to enter the water at Salmon Cove Sands thanks to what appears to be blue-green algae that’s affecting nearby ponds and the river that runs out to the popular beach.

Area residents started noticing the water at Forest Pond which flows down through Salmon Cove was discoloured with many dead or dying fish.

Various agencies are investigating, and the local town council is asking people to stay out of the water for the time being.

Water samples have been taken, the results of which aren’t immediately available.

Dead Fish Found at Forest Pond

Fisheries officials were in Conception Bay North on the weekend after hundreds of dead fish washed up around Forest Pond near Persalvic Elementary.

One area resident, Josh Layman, posted to Facebook that all kinds of different fish could be seen as the water—of a scheduled salmon river that runs from the pond to Salmon Cove Sands—took on more of a greenish brownish tint over the past few days.

Layman says a similar situation occurred about 20 years ago, resulting in the closure of the beach area to swimming. The trail begins at Forest Pond.

He says the river links up with Big Pond in Salmon Cove, then goes down a bit further and into Harry’s Pond. He says some of the best sea-trouting around is in that system.