Stranded Orca Saved By Volunteers Who Kept It Cool And Wet For Eight Hours

A stranded orca was saved by a group of volunteers, who donated their time to help the animal stay cool and wet until the tide rose enough for it to swim back out to sea.

On Wednesday morning, the group The Cetacean Lab received a phone call saying that an orca had become stranded on a pile of rocks during low tide on the North Coast of B.C. The group, along with other groups World Wildlife Fund and the Git G’at Guardians from Hartley Bay, immediately went to the location of the beached whale and used sheets and a water pump to keep it moist and cool for eight hours as they anxiously waited for the tide to rise.

“We decided the best thing to do would be to keep her cool, that meant to put water on her body and we used blankets and sheets,” said Hermann Meuter, a co-founder of Cetacean Lab, said, according to CBC News. “It was the only thing we could do.”

While the 9-year-old transient orca was extremely distressed when the volunteers arrived, they said they could see her behavior change dramatically when she realized they were there to help her. The volunteers said it took around 20 minutes for them to gain her trust, but she eventually calmed down and let them offer their help.

“At first she was stressed, you could see that her breathing was getting a little faster,” said Meuter. “I think she knew that we were there to help her.”

At approximately 4 p.m., the tide had risen significantly, enough for the orca to free herself from the rocks. Meuter said it took her approximately 45 minutes to figure out how to best maneuver away, but she eventually freed herself and joined her pod, which was swimming nearby.

“We all cared about this whale and we were just very lucky to give that whale another chance,” said Meuter.

The Cetacean Lab later took to Facebook to share a post, documenting the events of the day.

“Today was one of very high emotions. It started with a call from Eric on the Bangarang that he just spotted a beached orca. The Guardians from Hartley Bay were soon on their was, as were we at Whale Point, with WWF also on board.

“Eric put together a McGaver type water pump, we grabbed as many sheets as we could, and Hermann, Bunker and Nicole, Eric and myself went to shore and approached the whale as quietly as possible. It was a team effort, and fortunately on some level this transient orca understood that we were trying to help.

“She cried often, which tore at our hearts, but as the tide came up there were many cheers as this whale was finally free after 6+ hours of being stuck on this rock. The story of how she got there is amazing, we will write up a proper blog and already on getting a video organized. A giant thank you once again to this amazing community that comes together so quickly to protect what is sacred.”

In 2011, The Cetacean Lab also helped save a young humpback whale that found itself tangled in a gill net.

[Photo via Facebook/Whale Point]