Stranded Bryde’s whale dies of injuries on Surat Thani island
Villagers and officials try to free stranded whale from rocks but it dies from injuries sustained in struggle
A 15-metre-long Bryde’s whale got stuck on the rocks of a beach on a small island in Surat Thani’s Samui district and died of its injuries on Saturday, local villagers and officials said.
Local fisherman Thirapong Thongmak called the Thai Maritime Enforcement Command Centre’s Surat Thani office when he spotted the whale struggling among rocks in the shallow sea at Koh Paluay in Moo 6 village of Samui district.
The office dispatched officials to investigate but they arrived too late. The whale died of injuries caused by its struggle against the rocks that resulted in severe cuts throughout its body. The cuts caused the whale to bleed until the seawater at the spot turned red.
Officials said the whale struggled so hard that its tail also broke.
The fisherman recounted that he was riding his long-tail boat to fish and spotted the whale struggling on the rocks.
He called his fishermen friends to help but the seawater at the spot was just 30-40 centimetres deep, so the villagers could not move the whale out of the rocks.
Officials believed the whale was too close to the shore and when the tide went down, it got stuck.
