Tiny town rallies around killer whale calf rescue effort
It’s just after 10 a.m., and Yvonne Malanfant has finished brewing a fresh pot of coffee and placing a plate of homemade quesadillas with a side dish of spicy mayonnaise on a table for everybody to share.
A little bell above her door rings to announce the arrival of another local to pick up their mail and catch up on recent events.
Customer traffic at the small Canada Post outlet at Zeballos, B.C., has been extra busy over the past two weeks as residents gather to talk about the drama unfolding in a nearby tidal lagoon where efforts are underway to rescue a stranded killer whale calf that tragically lost its mother.
“This is incredible,” says Malanfant, the postmistress for the community of about 200 residents. “It’s pretty incredible what’s going on. It’s made the news every night.”
Zeballos, located at the end of a gravel logging road more than 450 kilometres northwest of Victoria, has fully invested itself in the unfolding rescue effort, which could occur this week.
Hunters, loggers, fishing guides and the area’s Indigenous and non-Indigenous residents all say they are deeply concerned about the plight of the twoyear-old orca calf, left alone without its mother in Little Espinosa Inlet since March, and a rescue attempt can’t come soon enough.
James Rothenburgersaid despite the long-shot odds facing the young orca, every attempt should be made to get her out of the lagoon.
“If it’s going to die, you’ve got to do something,” he said. “They can’t let it die there.”
Ehattesaht First Nation Chief Simon John said his people decided early on, after going through the heartbreak of trying to save the orca calf’s pregnant mother last month, that they must do what they can to save the calf.
The mother orca died on March 23 when it became stranded on a rocky beach at low tide, despite efforts of local residents to help the whale.
John said the First Nation, which is working with the Fisheries Department on a complex rescue plan, is providing funding and equipment for the effort to save the calf. He said the First Nation considers the rescue situation a pivotal moment in modern history.