China races to rescue stranded whales

Rescue is underway after 12 whales were found stranded in coastal waters off east China's Zhejiang Province on July 6. (Photo/ Sina Weibo account of Xinhua News Agency)

HANGZHOU, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Two of the nine rescued whales stranded in coastal waters off east China's Zhejiang Province were released Tuesday night, local authorities said.

Local police received a report at about 8:00 a.m. Tuesday of 12 whales spotted hundreds of meters from the shore in the city of Linhai, Zhejiang.

The dozen stranded marine mammals are melon-headed whales, three of which lost vital signs before the rescue team arrived, the city's publicity department said.

After nearly 10 hours of rescue work, the other nine whales had been saved and transported to safe locations. They were all in good condition, the rescuers said.

When the rescue operation ended, two of the animals were sent to an aquarium, another two have gone to a coastal park, and the remaining five were transported to a local marine animal breeding company.

The two whales in the coastal park were diagnosed later by experts to be in good health. At 9 p.m. Tuesday, they were released at seawaters with a depth of more than 15 meters by experts and fishery authorities.

It is not the fishing season in China, so the whales likely swam too close to the shore as there was no disturbance from noisy boat engines and more tempting food sources nearby, according to experts.

The local public security department and fishery department, as well as locals in the fishing industry, rushed to the site to aid the rescue. Cranes and stretchers were used in the rescue efforts and the release of the two.

Because of the hot weather, rescuers used ice to cool the stranded melon-headed whales, and constantly poured clean seawater on them to prevent them from choking on mud.

They also used wet towels to keep the mammals damp, and erected sheds to protect them from the sun, said Zhu Yupeng from the law-enforcement team of the city's marine and fishery bureau.

"We tried to release one of the whales into the sea during the rescue, but it was washed up on the beach," said Zhu. "If they are sick, they might beach again after being released."

Approximately 150 individuals participated in the rescue effort. Experts said they would discuss the care and release plan for the remaining rescued whales.