On the island of Okinawa, in southern Japan, is Nago City. It is renowned for the beach resorts that line Nago Bay. And also, glass-bottomed boats travel the crystal-clear waters of Busena Marine Park, which houses an underwater observatory, to the southwest. Recently, a video of the city’s river turning red surfaced on the Internet. Here’s what happened and why the river in Japan’s Nago City turned red!
A River In Japan’s Nago City Turned Red!
A port in Nago city, #Okinawa, #Japan, has stirred concern among residents as its waters turned a vivid blood red colour. pic.twitter.com/rGJ6U69nw1
— ilie zavragiu (@iliezavragiu) June 28, 2023
Pictures of the blood-red river that was stained by a food colouring spill in a Japanese port have appeared online. Locals and tourists in Nago City, Japan’s Okinawa, noticed the river changing colour to a dark crimson shade.
The leak apparently began in one of the brewery’s cooling systems, which most likely happened on Tuesday, according to a BBC report. At around 9.30 am local time, according to sources in Japanese media, is when it was stopped.
A brewery, Orion Breweries, issued an apology for causing enormous trouble and worry later on. They stated that the port turned coloured as a result of food colouring dye leaking into a river, but they also added that there were no health dangers.
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According to a report by an independent source, it is frequently used in the pharmaceutical and cosmetics sectors and is generally recognised as safe. The chemical is utilised in factories during the cooling process as a food additive.
Reason Of The Leak
Residents in the Japanese city of Nago have woken up to find that an area of normally clear blue water has turned into a terrible shade of red.
infantmilitario pic.twitter.com/f5qFZRgvAZ
— dana (@dana916) June 28, 2023
The brewery further stated that they think the leak was caused by the release of propylene glycol which was present in the cooling water utilised to chill their production facilities. It is a food ingredient that is specified in the Food Sanitation Act’s enforcement requirements. The reddened sea was brought on by the cooling water leak that entered a river via a rain gutter.
Hajime Murano, the president of the Japanese beer company, stated that they are looking into how the leak happened. He further stated that steps would be taken to prevent a similar scenario from occurring in the future.
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Releasing chemicals in water bodies can pollute the source of water and is an offence. Industries need to pay attention to this and make sure none of the harmful chemicals are released into the water!
Cover Image Courtesy: Andy Vermaut/ Twitter