Joe Kahlo
After a 20-hour rescue mission, a 65-foot sperm whale that washed up on a beach in China was finally towed back into the water.
Recently, a massive sperm whale became stranded in Ningbo City, south of Shanghai.
It was feared that if it wasn’t placed back into the water in time, it would perish from dehydration.
Despite the fact that whales breathe oxygen like terrestrial animals, they require water to keep from overheating.
Beached whales are also at risk of collapsing under their own weight or drowning if their blowhole is covered by high tide.
Firefighters dispatched a rescue squad, who sprayed water on the whale’s 20-meter body and constructed a seawater trench pool to keep it alive.
Volunteers aided in the movement of the whale, which weighed an estimated ten tons.
The whale was dragged to shallow waters after the team tied it up using guide ropes.
A tugboat was deployed to help transfer the whale farther into the sea when the tide reached its greatest point at about 10 p.m.
The whale was released in deep seas after the rescue crew broke the hauling rope at 5:30 a.m. on Wednesday.
Local media captured the authorities’ rescue operations as well as the creature’s successful release.
As the dawn rose after the dramatic rescue operation, the whale could be seen swimming out into the distance.