Thousands of young salmon are dead after a crash in northeast Oregon.
A total of 102,000 young salmon were being transported in a tanker truck for release in the Imnaha River last Friday when the driver took a sharp turn and crashed.
According to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, the 53-foot truck rolled onto the passenger side, skidded along the pavement and then went over a rocky embankment, causing it to roll onto its roof.
The crash happened alongside Lookingglass Creek, a tributary of the Grande Ronde River. About 77,000 fish made it into the creek when the tanker overturned but 25,529 others died, officials said. Their carcasses were recovered either in the tanker or on the streambank.
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife employee who was driving the truck received minor injuries.
Wildlife divisions work to release the species into the river to ensure a healthy population. The young salmon that died were about 20% of the total set to be released this year into the Imnaha River, where the wild population is listed as threatened.
Officials expect to see about 500 to 900 fewer adult fish returning in 2026 and 2027 due to the loss. The 77,000 fish that made it into Lookingglass Creek will likely return there and produce approximately 350 to 700 additional adults, officials said.