Fish in the lakes surrounding Ipswich Golf Club are dying due to the intense heat hitting Suffolk.

Ipswich Star: Evironment Agency staff on the water of the River Colne rescuing fish in distress. Picture: ENVIRONMENT AGENCYEvironment Agency staff on the water of the River Colne rescuing fish in distress. Picture: ENVIRONMENT AGENCY (Image: Archant)

More than 6,000 fish have been affected in East Anglian waterways in a wave of incidents made worse and more frequent by the hot weather.

The warm conditions have also lead to an explosion of the amount of potentially dangerous blue-green algae in the river, Colne, Blackwater, Gipping and in the lakes at Ipswich Golf Club.

READ MORE: The latest news on the toxic blue-green algae at Aqua Park Suffolk

An Environment Agency spokesperson said: “Fish in distress and fish kills have been reported at multiple sites across East Anglia affecting over 6000 fish.

Over the last few days our officers have been attending incidents at the River Blackwater at Bocking, a lake in Mill River at the Ipswich Golf Course, Hawkes Mill at River Gipping, Layham Mill on the River Brett near Hadleigh, Holland Brook at Clacton, and Castle Park on the River Colne, Colchester.

“Although many fish have died, thousands more have been rescued and relocated too, thanks to the hard work and dedication by our officers.

“They have been deploying aeration equipment and using hydrogen peroxide in affected stretches of rivers to boost oxygen levels.

“They are also monitoring the oxygen levels in some rivers in case aeration is needed.

At this time of year we regularly respond to reports of fish in distress due to natural processes reducing oxygen levels in the water.

“Hot, sunny weather can lead to low flows in rivers and still water fisheries start to warm up.”

The Environment Agency have also struggled with the effect of the thunderstorm that hit the region last weekend.

Debris that has accumulated in the drainage systems after a long dry spell is flushed into the river by heavy rainfall.

As a result, the algae and micro-organisms in the rivers rapidly multiply which causes a significant drop in oxygen levels, resulting in the fish being starved of oxygen.

The Environment Agency have said if people see dead fish or fish gasping for breath, they should contact their incident hotline on 0800 80 70 60.