SAVE THE WHALES
N. Zealand frantic as 400 beached
These pilot whales have beached themselves on a remote shoreline in New Zealand — in one of the worst mass strandings in the country’s history.
“You could hear the sounds of splashing, of blowholes being cleared, of sighing,” Cheree Morrison told The Associated Press. “The young ones were the worst. Crying is the only way to describe it.”
Kiwis from all walks of life have descended upon the beaches of South Island’s Farewell Spit in an attempt to save the whales, which were found Thursday night by conservation workers.
A total of 416 so far have washed ashore there — with the majority already dead upon their discovery, according to the volunteer rescue group Project Jonah.
While the exact cause of the mass stranding was not known, experts say there are sev- eral possible reasons — including the area’s shallow, muddy waters, which can confuse the whale’s sonar.
“It can be really quite distressing seeing so many dead whales,” Department of Conservation community ranger Kath Inwood told AP. “People need to be resilient and handle that and then get on with what needs to be done.”
After deciding against a night rescue, officials and volunteers flocked to South Island on Friday at daybreak and began working to free the whales. By noon, high tide had refloated all of the remaining surviving whales — but 90 were stranded again as the tide went back out.
Roughly 50 more floated nearby in the shallows, Reuters reported.
The Department of Conservation reported Friday that approximately 250 to 300 whales had died as a result of the beaching.