Multi-agency response team frees entangle humpback whale off Maui
By Web staff
Click here for updates on this story
MAUI COUNTY, Hawaii (KITV) — A multi-agency team helped untangle a humpback whale off the Maui coast that was wrapped up in heavy gauge line.
The team led by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) trained responders located the whale just outside Maalaea, in the Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary.
The whale, an adult male, had heavy gauge line – a poly blend – wrapped around its head above its pectoral flippers that NOAA rescuers said would have been extremely difficult for the whale to have freed on its own. The location of the line also would have kept the whale from being able to feed.
The whale was first spotted by a whale watching vessel on March 13. A crew attempted to locate the whale that day but said they could not find it among the many whales that were in the area that day.
Another whale watching vessel spotted the entangled humpback again on March 15 and another rescue mission was launched.
With the help of a multi-agency rescue effort, crews were able to find the entangled whale and removed 21 feet of 7/8” diameter, 3-strand, poly-blend line, according to NOAA.
The response team for both sightings included Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary, Pacific Whale Foundation, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa – Marine Mammal Research Program, Cardinal Point Captains, the Ultimate Whale Watch trained response team, NOAA OLE, and Trilogy Excursions. Shoreside support was provided by NOAA Fisheries, NOAA Corps, and the state of Hawaiʻi Division of Aquatic Resources.
The recovered gear is being investigated to determine where it originated.
Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.
