NORTH FORT MYERS, Fla., -- One neighbor says his dog accidentally jumped into an algae-filled canal after he had a seizure. He says even though his dog is okay, the algae isn't going anywhere.
"It probably took us like three hours to shower him," said Gary Scicluna, the dog-owner. "We couldn’t lift him up over the wall, so I had to get in the water and help lift him up.”
Scicluna says his family moved to North Fort Myers just two months ago from Michigan and were shocked to find their backyard canal was covered in green.
“I don’t even want to come outside because I can smell it from back there," said Scicluna's son, Dylan. "It's disgusting."
The family tells Fox 4 it's the smell of the canal that's the most unbearable.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers resumed water releases from Lake Okeechobee Friday morning and will keep going for about ten days.
“I’ve never had where when you walk out the door someone punches you in the face with feces," said neighbor Jay Bisson.
Army Corps says they will do pulse releases of the water, meaning the flow rate will change over a two week period. Rainfall can determine how much.
Water releases had been temporarily halted on last Monday in order to give managers a chance to conduct a full assessment of system conditions.
