NATCHEZ — A state fish expert and officials from the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks are investigating the sudden death of goldfish at the fountain in Memorial Park.

Earlier this week, city officials responded to reports of dead fish floating in the pool surrounding the fountain.

Natchez Mayor Darryl Grennell said samples of the fish had been sent to a fish expert at Mississippi State University.

Not all of the fish in the fountain were killed. As of Thursday evening, several small goldfish were seen swimming in the pool.

Grennell said preliminary investigations by officials from the MDWFP indicate the deaths may have resulted from overfeeding.

Uneaten pieces of bread were seen floating in the fountain Thursday.

Grennell said wildlife officials suspect the uneaten food floating in the pond combined with recent high temperatures created an ideal situation for bacteria and other toxins to grow.

“I know everybody loves to feed the animals like they do at zoos, but the additional food can create a toxic environment,” Grennell said.

Natchez resident Dan Bland has been helping the city feed the fish with food meant for goldfish, Grennell said.

Bland, who lives across Rankin Street from the park, said he was saddened when he heard about the fish earlier this week.

At one point Bland said that he had counted 103 fish during his regular fish feedings.

Although uneaten food floating in the pond may have created a toxic situation for the fish, Bland said the fountain should be scrubbed and cleaned by city crews more often.

Bland said he believes part of the problem is that the public works department is “totally understaffed” and is so busy that it can’t keep the fountain clean.

Grennell said city crews clean the fountain four times a year. Each cleaning requires replacing more than 30,000 gallons of water. Grennell said crews do come out every two weeks to remove leaves that have fallen from the live oak trees in the park.

Bland said the number of times the city comes to clean is not enough.

“It is a shame and should be cleaned more often than it is,” Bland said. “My heart is broken from the situation.”

“I had some good friends swimming around in there,” he said.

Natchez Publics Works Director Justin Dollar recently submitted to the board of aldermen a proposal to install a filtering system in the fountain, Grennell said. The cost of the filtering system is estimated to be approximately $11,000. The board would have to consider such a purchase in upcoming budget work sessions, Grenell said.

Until the results come back from the fish expert, Grennell said the city would not know for sure the cause of the fish deaths.

“I am praying that nobody went to poison the fish,” Grennell said.

In the interim, city crews are replacing 25 percent of the water in the fountain at the request of wildlife officials.