Group works to clean fishing lines from Naples Pier

The Naples Pier is usually filled with people trying to get a bite. But it’s what they leave behind that have some people upset.

A group got to work to clean up water around the Naples Pier on Thursday and found more than five pounds of fishing line and hooks.

“Fishing line that had been there for years, hooks the size of your hands,” said Tim Thompson, who assisted with cleaning. “It was a big surprise to me and I’ve been here forever. I was shocked at what we found.”

Fishing lines, hooks and weights can go as far as killing pelicans.

Thompson is teamed up with Ray Erickson for the cleanup.

One pelican was caught on a line on Thursday while two others were hooked. That’s what those responsible for the beach cleanup are hoping to avoid.

“I was absolutely shocked at how much debris was under down there,” Thompson said.  “It’s people throwing their lines underneath not knowing what’s under there and it gets caught and there’s nothing else to do but let it hang.”

They spent about four hours cutting away the fishing line.

“There’s people that walk out on the pier and they see the amount of injured birds. and that’s not leaving a good impression,” Thompson said. “It’s actually pretty brutal to see some of these birds hung up.”

There are at least three tubs on the pier where people can dispose of their fishing lines.

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