If You See One Of These Things On The Beach, Keep Your Dog As Far Away As Possible

A woman on the English coast was taking her dog for a walk on the beach when suddenly he started pulling at the leash.

Clearly, something had caught his attention. Finally, the woman saw what was making her dog so excited: it was a chunky white lump that gave off a powerful aroma. At first, she thought it was a jellyfish, but then she looked closer and recoiled in horror.

A woman in England recently found this strange white substance washed up on the beach. It looked like some kind of jellyfish, but the truth was even weirder. It was a lump of solid fat. So-called “fatbergs” are becoming increasingly common and are indicators of a much bigger problem.

These white deposits are formed when dirty cooking oil combines with trash and solidifies in the sewer system. When these lumps make it from the sewer into the open ocean, they eventually wash up on shore.

It’s not just gross; they’re highly toxic and can be harmful to dogs. Prolonged exposure is dangerous to humans as well, since these fatbergs carry countless bacteria. They’re not just causing problems on the beaches either; city workers in London have identified them as the cause of massive plumbing problems all over the city.

The largest reported fatberg was found in the London sewer system and weighed 15 tons. A lot of that mass was from non-degradable wet wipes. Too gross!

Let this be a lesson to dispose of your used cooking oil responsibly and cut down on the wet wipes. Just use toilet paper like the rest of us.