“Enormous man-made tragedy”: all 1,500 fish dead in the devastated “Aquadom” Dutch customs officers find 1.3 tons of cocaine among bananas

It was an aquarium of superlatives, the “Aquadom” in Berlin: almost a million liters of salt water, 2,000 tons in weight, about 1,500 fish. Early Friday morning, for reasons that are still unclear, the swimming pool burst open, which led to a large-scale action by the police and fire brigade. According to initial findings, two people were slightly injured.

But what happened to the animals that lived in the “Aquadom”? “We must assume that all fish have unfortunately died,” said a spokesman for the Berlin police. The animal protection organization PETA described the incident as a “massive man-made tragedy” and announced it would file a criminal complaint against those responsible for the aquarium. It was “apparently careless with the lives of about 1,500 fish”.

Marine aquariums are under criticism

The “Aquadom” has been managed by the Berlin Society for Large Aquariums (BGG) since March 2006. This writes on its website that it is responsible for the technique, feeding the fish and a “species and animal friendliness”. The website also contains a detailed list of the fish species that lived in the “Aquadom”.

The “Aquadom” was a saltwater aquarium and, according to the operator, had to become as natural a coral reef as possible over time. Accordingly, most of the fish living there came from areas with coral reefs.

Saltwater aquariums are criticized because many saltwater fish are not farmed but caught in the wild. According to estimates, 80 percent of them die in transit, depending on the species. It is currently unknown how many wild animals lived in the “Aquadom”. The BGG was initially not available for an explanation.