Fish kill was apparent in Bais City, Province of Negros Oriental immediately after wastewater from a distillery plant spilled into seawaters.

The chemical spill has affected over 4,000 fishermen.

Fish raised in cages by fisherfolk of Bais City and adjacent Manjuyod town died after waste material from the distillery contaminated seawaters.

The dike of the wastewater lagoon collapsed reportedly evening on October 26, 2025.

According to data from the Local Government Unit (LGU) of Bais City, over 2,000 fishermen in eight coastal barangays are affected, and another 2,000 in Manjuyod.

The tourism sector in both Bais City and Manjuyod, prominent for their whale and dolphin watching activities and sand bar, respectively, is affected heavily.

Based on an executive order of Manjuyod Mayor Raffy Andaya, the sand bar is closed temporarily to visitors.

Bais City LGU also suspended whale and dolphin-watching activities near the sand bar.

According to Pepe Llanera a fisherman, the water smells foul and is itchy to the skin.

Llanera said that damage to his fish farm is pegged at P50,000 after milkfish (bangus), rabbitfish (danggit), and grouper (pugapo) all died.

He appealed to the local government and the owner of the distillery plant for indemnity, or compensation for economic losses.

Richard Jamito, a fisherman in Manjuyod, shares in the appeal.

Llanera and Jamito are just two of several fishermen who are disheartened by the incident, wondering how to recover their losses.

The LGUs of Bais City and Manjuyod vowed to distribute food packs to affected families.

The management of the distillery refused to grant an on-camera interview, but assured of financial assistance to affected fishermen.

In a statement, the management said they surmised that the collapse was because of the series of ground shaking triggered by powerful earthquakes that hit areas in the Visayas and Mindanao, and the successive days of persistent rain.

As of this posting, repair works on the dike are ongoing. However, Bais City Mayor Luigi Marcel Goñi has already ordered a stop to operations of the distillery plant, following the incident.

Bais City is nestled along Tañon Strait, a protected seascape and deemed the largest protected seascape in the Philippines.

Bais City LGU pointed out that the company will be held accountable for the mishap and the detrimental effects to the environment and the local economy, and is expected to pay fines.

According to Atty. Romela Mae Lozano-Napao, Bais City administrator, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources have conducted water sampling to determine the chemical that has contaminated seawater in the affected coastal barangays.

(via Vic Camion/GMA Regional TV Balitang Bisdak)