LEXINGTON COUNTY, SC (WIS) – A South Carolina river ranger came across a strange sight Tuesday afternoon: hundreds of dead chickens floating in the water.

According to Hugo Krispyn, a river warden for the Edisto River, hundreds of rotting chicken carcasses were left in feed bags near a bridge in the North Fork section of the river.

The landfill is located near the county line between Aiken and Lexington counties.

In a Facebook post, Krispyn said that when he first approached the carcasses, he thought it was a routine incident of garbage being dumped on the ground before he realized what the strange floating mass actually was.

Krispyn said state authorities are investigating the incident. The chickens do not fall under the category of ordinary garbage, as it is a crime to dispose of animal carcasses in a body of water in the Palmetto State.

Dead animals in river water could transmit diseases to people who rely on rivers for drinking water.

It is currently unclear who is responsible for releasing the chickens into the water and where the chickens came from.

The South Carolina Department of Environmental Conservation confirmed that the agency has been notified of the incident and is investigating.

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