• Privacy policy
  • T&C’s
  • About Us
    • FAQ
    • Meet the Team
  • Contact us
TLE ONLINE SHOP!
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Opinion
  • Elevenses
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • Film
    • Lifestyle
      • Horoscopes
    • Lottery Results
      • Lotto
      • Thunderball
      • Set For Life
      • EuroMillions
  • Food
    • All Food
    • Recipes
  • Property
  • Travel
  • Tech/Auto
  • JOBS
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
SUPPORT THE LONDON ECONOMIC
NEWSLETTER
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Opinion
  • Elevenses
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • Film
    • Lifestyle
      • Horoscopes
    • Lottery Results
      • Lotto
      • Thunderball
      • Set For Life
      • EuroMillions
  • Food
    • All Food
    • Recipes
  • Property
  • Travel
  • Tech/Auto
  • JOBS
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
No Result
View All Result
Home News Environment

Watch: Whale freed after becoming stranded still in River Thames

“We couldn’t believe our eyes when we first saw the poor fella."

Joe Mellor by Joe Mellor
2021-05-10 14:08
in Environment, News
FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmailWhatsapp

A small whale freed after it became stranded along the River Thames is on the move again – but is still in the London river hours later.

Hundreds gathered at Richmond Lock and Weir in south-west London on Sunday after the whale, a Minke between three to four metres long, became stuck on the lock’s boat rollers.

Videos showed it being hosed down by a man believed to be a Port of London Authority (PLA) staffer while a vet performed a check-up at the river’s edge, before the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) arrived at the scene to the cheers of onlookers at about 9pm.

Fire crews

Fire crews were also at the scene, along with the British Divers Marine Life Rescue service.

Footage posted from the scene showed the whale finally being freed at about 1am.

Glen Nicolaides, from London Fire Brigade, told the BBC the whale had been moved to a more “stable” location where it would be assessed to determine the scale of its injuries and whether it could be released.

Rescuers have managed to free a small whale which became stranded along the River Thames in west London

The whale, thought to be a young minke whale, was first spotted at Richmond Lock and Weir at around 7pm on Sunday

Read more: https://t.co/aEzmIjYdp3 pic.twitter.com/3hHD6YTw7h

— Sky News (@SkyNews) May 10, 2021

But the whale was spotted near Teddington Lock at just after 10.20am, heading downstream towards Chiswick and back towards Richmond Lock and Weir.

RelatedPosts

Terrifying satellite image shows impact of Britain’s heatwave

New forecast for energy price cap is terrifying

Brilliant Eddie Mair demands answers from Iain Duncan Smith on cost-of-living crisis

Madeley absolutely beasts Cleverly in rare moment of TV brilliance

A spokeswoman for the RNLI said: “Chiswick’s RNLI crew were tasked by London Coastguard at 8pm on Sunday May 9 and worked with the fire rescue service, police and British Divers Marine Life Rescue to try to free the whale.

“Together they managed to free it and were taking it to a deeper part of the river when it swam away.

“The whale was displaying concerning behaviours and experts in attendance were concerned that it may be unwell.”

London Fire Brigade station commander Glen Nicolaides, who was at the scene, said: “This was a very rare and unusual incident. Crews assisted the Coastguard, RNLI and other marine agencies at the scene.

“Our crews were on stand-by while a marine biologist and vet assessed the condition of the whale. The mammal was removed for further assessment by marine specialists.”

A witness told the PA news agency that “quite the crowd” watched as the attempted rescue took place on Sunday.

Jake Manketo, 20, from Richmond, said: “Everyone here is just hoping they get it out.

Poor fella

“We couldn’t believe our eyes when we first saw the poor fella, not every day something like this happens in Richmond.”

It is believed the whale was first spotted at midday a few miles up the river near Barnes Bridge.

WATCH: Crews work to free a baby whale that found itself stuck in a lock in the River Thames in Twickenham, England on Sunday. The whale was allegedly moved to a safe spot early on Monday morning, local time. pic.twitter.com/1BYPwXniK8

— CBS News (@CBSNews) May 10, 2021

A spokesman for the PLA, which owns and operates the lock, said: “At around 7pm on Sunday, a small whale, approximately 3-4m long, believed to be a Minke whale, became stranded at Richmond Lock and Weir.

“PLA staff have attempted to assist the whale with water along with British Divers Marine Life Rescue.”

Watch as rescuers free a whale stuck in a lock along the River Thames in south-west London https://t.co/hWl6kAMSWN pic.twitter.com/mm15RfmVRV

— ITV News (@itvnews) May 10, 2021

Minke whales are the smallest of the great whales, growing to about 10m.

They can usually be found throughout the northern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Their range extends from the ice edge in the Arctic during the summer to near the equator during winter.

Baby whale thrashes in distress during rescue operation at Richmond Lock pic.twitter.com/Qx6rI6AIuq

— Lucia Binding (@luciabinding) May 9, 2021

Julia Cable, national co-ordinator for British Divers Marine Life Rescue, told Sky News: “It’s surprising that no one spotted the whale on its journey to Richmond Lock.

“We do not know how long it has been trapped here but it was spotted at 7.30pm.

“The nutritional condition of the whale is fairly poor. He or she isn’t nicely rounded like a whale should be, so it’s nutritionally compromised.

“There’s also damage to the pectoral fins, from stranding, and the fin is showing signs that perhaps it was stranded somewhere earlier in the day as well. But it’s now comfortable and the breathing rate is low.

“Wehave sent pictures to the vet so we can get further advice on what to do next.”

Related: ‘Unseen suffering and death’ – Action urged to prevent fishing gear deaths of porpoises, dolphins and whales

Since you are here

Since you are here, we wanted to ask for your help.

Journalism in Britain is under threat. The government is becoming increasingly authoritarian and our media is run by a handful of billionaires, most of whom reside overseas and all of them have strong political allegiances and financial motivations.

Our mission is to hold the powerful to account. It is vital that free media is allowed to exist to expose hypocrisy, corruption, wrongdoing and abuse of power. But we can't do it without you.

If you can afford to contribute a small donation to the site it will help us to continue our work in the best interests of the public. We only ask you to donate what you can afford, with an option to cancel your subscription at any point.

To donate or subscribe to The London Economic, click here.

The TLE shop is also now open, with all profits going to supporting our work.

The shop can be found here.

You can also SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER .

Subscribe to our Newsletter

View our  Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions

Trending on TLE

  • All
  • trending
Abdollah

‘Rescue us’: Afghan teacher begs UK to help him escape Taliban

CHOMSKY: “If Corbyn had been elected, Britain would be pursuing a much more sane course”

What If We Got Rid Of Prisons?

More from TLE

Why sleep really is sometimes the best medicine

TLE Meets…Jamali Maddix

UK’s 10 scariest Halloween property price drops

‘I’m so happy to compete against him again’ Spurs manager on Man City boss

Children whose mothers are in prison are more likely to become drug addicts, alcoholics & turn to prostitution

Pest control firm forced to recall faulty face masks after netting £170 million PPE contract

Product Review: Crash Bandicoot XL Cable Guy

Are Robot Servers The Food Industry’s Next Big Thing?

Remember, remember, this disastrous November

Beer of the Week: Kirkstall Brewery Gelato Tropicale

JOBS

FIND MORE JOBS

About Us

TheLondonEconomic.com – Open, accessible and accountable news, sport, culture and lifestyle.

Read more

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.




No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Food
  • Travel
  • JOBS
  • More…
    • Elevenses
    • Opinion
    • Property
    • Tech & Auto
  • About Us
    • Meet the Team
    • Privacy policy
  • Contact us

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.