Thick carpet of 'smelly' seaweed washes up on Florida beach

Thick carpet of 'smelly' seaweed washes up on Florida beach

A thick carpet of "smelly" sargassum seaweed has washed up on Florida's Delray Beach on July 22.

The filmer told Newsflare: "The seaweed, which originates in the Atlantic Ocean off Brazil and in the Caribbean Sea, blew to shore from the Gulf Stream on strong easterly winds.

"Delray Beach tries to deal with the seaweed by using tractors to plough it under, which, with the changing tides shifting the sand around, isn't always successful." The seaweed can get caught in the propellers of boats and it releases a distinct smell as it decays.

The plant generally inhabits shallow water and coral reefs.