180,000 horses abandoned due to US drought

The intense drought in the US has done major damage to the country’s eco-system. The relentless dry conditions have taken their toll on fresh water fish and livestock.

In Nebraska, the once broad Platte River has withered to a trickle. Due to a lack of water and high temperatures, countless scores of fish have perished.

Doyle, fishery officer in Nebraska, US, said, "By the first part of July, we were having fish kills. We were having dead fish by the first half of July."

While in Iowa and Illinois, the number of dead fish found recently reached over 50,000. Meanwhile, horses are being abandoned due to rising fodder prices caused by the drought.

According to US media, at least 180,000 horses were abandoned this year.

Tony, Chief of Horse Rescue Center, said, "They are getting left in the streets out here because of the cost of the hay. The cost of raising a horse nowadays is going up."

According to US media, at least 180,000 horses were abandoned this year. In the southwest part of the country home to a large proportion of Native Americans, animal carcasses can be seen everywhere.

The US Coast Guard said on Monday that 93 vessels were stranded by low water on the Mississippi River, after it closed an 11-mile stretch of the drought-parched waterway for dredging.

- Cntv.cn