AN eight-metre humpback whale was disentangled from rope and floats off Port Plomer last weekend in a successful multi-agency response.
“Volunteers and a rescue vessel from Marine Rescue Port Macquarie played an important role in this operation,” said Marine Rescue NSW Inspector John Murray.
“To see the whale successfully freed was extremely rewarding to all involved.”
The operation began on the morning of Saturday 8 August after ORCCA received reports of a humpback whale off Crescent Head swimming south with rope and floats trailing behind it.
Volunteers from ORRCA sighted the whale from shore while a fishing boat assisted responders by maintaining visual contact with the whale.
Marine Rescue NSW launched a vessel from Port Macquarie, carrying National Parks and Wildlife Services’ (NPWS) Large Whale Disentanglement Team (LWDT) personnel and an NPWS rigid inflatable boat (RIB) to the whale’s location.
The team deployed their boat from the vessel and carefully approached the whale. They were able to remove the rope and attached floats entangled around the whale’s tail, flukes and back, allowing the animal to continue its journey.
All recovered rope and floats were retrieved from the water and brought ashore for examination and disposal.
“This successful disentanglement was a fantastic example of multiple organisations working together seamlessly to achieve the best possible outcome for the whale,” said NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service Incident Controller Andrew Pitzen.
This was the second successful whale disentanglement off the NSW north coast on Saturday, with NPWS and ORRCA also assisting Sea World in a rescue operation near Byron Bay.
“It’s been a really challenging year for entanglements, so this is a fantastic outcome,” said ORRCA President Ashley Ryan.
“We’re seeing a growing number of humpback whales along the coast, and unfortunately that means we’re also seeing more entanglements year on year.”
These positive outcomes highlight the value of rapid reporting by members of the public, providing responders with the best opportunity to assess the situation and intervene where safe and appropriate.
If you see an entangled whale, please report its location, direction and speed to NPWS on 1300 072 757 or the ORRCA Rescue Hotline on 02 9415 3333.
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