This article was adapted from an article previously published in the 'Nassau Guardian' and was written as part of a series for use in British schools at KS3 with an accompanying worksheet.

A hole in the ground is always a useful place if you have something to dump. Many holes have been filled in this way; old gravel pits, quarries and even wells. In many cases both the rubbish and the hole disappear, and everyone is happy. Not always though!

There are holes where rare and unusual animals live and these can be threatened by Mankind. One of these is the Mermaid’s Pool, some fifteen miles from Nassau. No one knows why it’s called the Mermaid’s Pool, but it’s a nice romantic name! The Mermaid’s Pool is a type of type of cave known as a Blue Hole, a very deep and almost vertical cave filled with water. Its edge is perfectly circular and about eighty feet across. Below the rocky edge, the cave becomes wider, forming a huge bell shaped cavern plunging down more than two hundred feet into the solid rock.

I would often go diving in the Mermaid’s Pool when the sea was too rough. Here my diver friends and I would go down with our underwater torches and look for the very rare Bahamas Blind Cave Fish. This is a strange creature growing to only four or five inches, reddish brown with a big head and long tapering tail. For years the Mermaid’s Pool was thought to be the only place in the world where this rare fish lived. Since that time the fish has been discovered on a number of islands - in particular on Andros during the expedition led by the late Robert Palmer, and on Grand Bahama in the Lucayan Cavern by Jill Yaeger and Dennis Williams.

The telephone call came on a Monday. It was from a Mr. Joseph Rolle, and he was worried: "Attrill," he said, "you gotta see de Mermaid Pool.  He sounded elderly, with a deep voice and a strong Bahamian accent."What’s the problem then Mr Rolle,  I replied, my heart sinking. "Stinkin’ waste," he said, "dat’s de problem. Someone done dropped one whole Honey Wagon full ‘a sewage in de pool.

"Have you got any idea who might have done this? I asked him. "No". He paused for a moment. " I jus’ come dis mornin’ to catch some Snapper fish, an’ find de pool all stink up! I thanked him for his concern and said I would drive over there immediately and take a look. By now, I was as worried about the Mermaid’s Pool as Mr. Rolle was, for a ‘Honey Wagon’ is a tanker used to empty septic tanks and cess pits. The law says the toilet waste carried in these tankers must be emptied into a special well. There is a charge for this service though, and some drivers look for a way to economise.

I arrived at the Pool some forty minutes later, parking next to a battered brown pickup truck. The truck was Mr. Rolle’s, and evidently he was a farmer. There was a box of Mangoes and half a dozen unhappy looking chickens lying in the back, their legs tied with strips of palm leaf. Their eyes were pleading as if they knew they were soon for the pot. 

I could smell the sewage from almost fifty yards away. It wasn’t a pleasant odour and it grew stronger as I walked along the rough limestone track towards the pool. It was worse than I expected. The normally clear and sparkling water of the pool was a dull brown colour, and the smell was disgusting! The old man himself was standing on the rocky edge of the pool peering down into the murky water some six feet beneath his toes. 

He looked up as I arrived, his wrinkled brown face showing his feelings. "Dis ain’t no good." He said. "God ain’t meant for dis to happen.  "No, you’re right"  I replied.  It’s probably killed all the fish.

"So what you and your National Truss’ ger do ‘bout it den?  He turned towards me, screwing up his eyes against the intense tropical sun. "There’s not much I can do, I told him. "We’ll probably never find out who did this. As for the fish, I guess we’ll have to dive into the pool and find out what the damage is.

"When I left a few minutes later, the old man was still looking down into the water. He was clearly saddened by the pollution and by the loss of his fishing. He had no idea though, how great the loss really was! I would soon find out when I dived the pool with members of the Bahamas Underwater Club. 

© Rod Attrill