Ten whales were found dead on an Indonesian beach on Thursday, officials said, with images showing locals rushing to push a still-living member of the stricken pod back into the sea.
The marine mammals, ranging from two to six metres (6.5-20 feet) in length, were found in the remote province of East Nusa Tenggara, the head of the region’s water conservation agency Ikram Sangadji told AFP.
Footage showed a group of around 10 men struggling to push an eleventh member of the pod across the baking sands and back into the ocean.
They eventually managed to get the creature – which was scarred with deep cuts – into the water, and it appeared to swim off by itself, prompting loud cheers from the group.
Officials had concluded the stricken pod were likely short-finned pilot whales, Sangadji said.
Short-finned pilots are highly social and are often involved in mass strandings, although scientists are still unclear as to why.
Cross-currents off beaches pose a danger to whales as they can get caught between reefs close to shore.
Last week, a giant 23-metre blue whale washed up near a beach near East Nusa Tenggara’s capital city Kupang.
Seven pilot whales were found dead near Kupang last October.
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