2010-06-03 09:27 –Cape Town –Two whales were rescued and returned to sea after they were found beached on Muizenberg’s Surfers Corner in Cape Town,the National Sea Rescue Institute said on Thursday. The female whales,a 2.8 metre adult and a 1.6 metre juvenile Pygmy Sperm,were found beached about 50 metres apart from each other at 20:30 on Wednesday,said NSRI spokesperson Craig Lambinon. “Using whale stretchers both whales were loaded onto NSRI 4×4 rescue vehicles and transported by road to Simonstown harbour,escorted by the Cape Town traffic officers. “The whales were kept wet with wet ambulance blankets. Noise was kept to a minimum to keep the whales as calm as possible,”said Lambinon.
On arrival in Simonstown harbour,the whales were loaded onto a boat which was escorted to sea by two NSRI rescue craft. All of the craft involved in the operation were put off in order to minimise the noise and afford the whales the opportunity to communicate with each other once released from the boat,he said. Rescue swimmers were deployed into the water to assist with the release of the whales.
“After their release,it appears that both whales swam away comfortably and it was confirmed that they remained together.”Lambinon said it was too early to say if the whales would survive,but he added that everyone involved was confident that the whales had been given every opportunity “to survive this ordeal”. It was not known what caused them to beach. –SAPA
Hopefully the whales will survive. It is thought that naval activity using excessive sonar might be a major cause for whales and dolphins beaching. They become disoriented and land up beaching. With pollution,over fishing and whaling,whales and other marine life are struggling for survival with many marine species rapidly becoming endangered and extinct.
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