Caught on camera: Humpback whales freed off Maui
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says trained responders freed two humpback whales tangled in gear last week.
Both happened off the coast of Maui in separate incidents on Jan. 8 and 9.
NOAA says the first entanglement, involving a subadult whale, was reported by a Maui tour boat operator the morning of Jan. 8.
Officials said the whale was caught with 200 feet of medium gauge line through its mouth; a situation so severe that the animal would not have been able to free itself.
The following day, on Jan. 9, officials said people on shore and flying approved drones overhead reported an entangled adult humpback whale off Kahana, Maui.
Officials said that whale also had a mouth entanglement, as well as three tight, life-threatening wraps of heavier gauge lines around its body.
In a statement, NOAA said that scientists confirmed that the recovered gear from both events was from the whales’ feeding grounds in Alaska.
Officials said they will continue to assess the gear to reduce the threat of future entanglements.
NOAA says there have been eight whale entanglement cases since mid-December.
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