Beached whale dies despite lifesaving efforts

Firefighters sprayed sperm whale with water in attempt to keep it alive after stranding on Redcar beach A 30ft whale that beached in north-east England has died. Firefighters used their jet to spray the mammal which was reported alive but part-submerged on the beach at Redcar, Cleveland, at 6.10am on Tuesday. A Cleveland fire brigade spokesman said shortly after 9am that the whale had died despite efforts to save it. A cordon had been set up around the stricken whale to stop people getting too close and causing it stress. Earlier, Cleveland police said a member of the public reported finding the 30-40ft sperm whale. and the force contacted experts to help rescue it. A police spokeswoman said: “On arrival the whale was still alive and partially submerged in seawater. “Police contacted the coastguard, the local authority, the fire brigade, RSPCA and specialist marine animal welfare agencies. “Police kept a cordon round the animal while they awaited colleagues from other organisations to arrive. “Sadly, the whale was pronounced dead just after 9am. “Arrangements for its disposal will be made by local authority environmental health officers and members of the public are asked to stay away from that area of the beach until this is complete.” Hundreds of onlookers turned out during half-term to take in the spectacle. Whales Marine life Wildlife guardian.co.uk

Posted by on May 31, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.