A whale that washed ashore on a beach in Cuba could not be returned to the open ocean and died, NBC News reported, despite efforts from local rescuers.
Video from Playa Baracoa, a province of Artemisa, captured the unusual sight.
Several people surrounded the whale that appeared to be injured and tried to help it return to deeper waters, but the animal became beached once again.
It’s rare to see a whale on the Cuban coast, but it has happened before. A whale and its calf were spotted on the southern coast of the province of Guantánamo in April 2023. A dead whale’s skeleton was recovered in the area of Cayo Francés in Villa Clara in November 2022.
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“I had never seen a whale, it’s the first time I see one, but I’m sad that it died, because it’s a living being and they should be taken care of,” a witness said.
Another person said they had spotted dolphins in the area before, but never a whale.
It appeared that the whale’s body was removed from the water, but it was not immediately clear what would be done with the carcass.
