A 10-metre humpback whale stranded off the coast of Queensland has been rescued following a mammoth operation.
Wildlife rangers were alerted the whale was stuck in shallow waters of the Dayman spit sandbank in the Great Sandy Marine Park at Hervey Bay on Sunday.
An assessment revealed that the whale was in good condition but unable to free itself.
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A 20-person crew, comprised of wildlife rangers and Sea World specialists, used vessels and equipment to encourage the whale to turn as they waited for the tide to improve.
”To keep the animal calm, they applied wet sheets to the whale’s exposed back to prevent sunburn and ensured members of the public stayed away,” Queensland’s Department of Environment said.
During the process, a three-metre tiger shark was spotted nearby and threw a wrench in their initial plan.
Shark spotters were put in place and slings were deployed from boats yesterday when the humpback finally moved across the bank and into deeper waters thanks to the activity and a high tide.
Crews monitored the whale to ensure it continued to swim out to sea and, by the afternoon, it was swimming freely with no signs of injury or distress.
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The whale has happily continued on its migration.
Senior ranger Mike Carr said the successful refloating of stranded humpbacks was “rare”.
“Whale strandings happen for lots of reasons, often because the animal is sick or injured, but sometimes it is a result of misadventure and there is a chance that the whale can be rescued,” he said.
“Handling an animal as big as a humpback isn’t easy, and they can become distressed quickly making refloating attempts challenging.
“We also need to navigate the environment including tides and sharks.”
To report marine animal strandings of sick, injured or dead turtles, dolphin, dugongs or whales, call 1300 130 372.
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