SYDNEY: Dozens of pilot whales have been found stranded on a beach on New Zealand’s North Island, and rescuers are trying to refloat a handful of survivors, the country’s conservation department said on Thursday.
At least 20 pilot whales were stranded along the Ngawi coast near Cape Palliser, the southernmost point of the North Island, the Department of Conservation said.
The department said it was working with local iwi — a Maori tribe — and Project Jonah, a group that specialises in rescuing stranded whales. Two whales had been successfully refloated so far.
Locals said up to 50 whales had been stranded along the coastline overnight, Radio New Zealand reported.
Most had succumbed to their injuries, and volunteers were trying to keep the survivors alive and hydrated using buckets of water and towels.
[[nid:1572635]]
“It’s horrible. The ones that are alive are on their last breaths,” Ngawi local Rob Bargh told Radio New Zealand.
In a Facebook post on Thursday, Project Jonah said four whales were alive and rescuers would try to refloat them during high tide.
Whale strandings are fairly common in New Zealand and neighbouring Australia because of the large populations of pilot whales living in the deep oceans surrounding both island nations. The cause of whale strandings is unknown.