The tragedy of whales in South Africa

The police were forced to shoot at the heads of exhausted whales on the beach as people flocked to see. The rain poured down, making the scene become more and more pitiful.

Despite the cold weather and waves, hundreds of lifeguards and volunteers tried to bring stranded whales on Kommitjie beach (South Africa) back to the ocean.But somehow they kept coming back to shore.Photo: AP.

South African officials began cleaning 55 corals washed up on Kommitjie beach from May 31. The police were forced to shoot 44 dead after the efforts of several hundred volunteers could not help them return to the ocean. All the whales that were shot were exhausted and certainly could not survive. So that is the only way for them to escape the persistent single pain. The remaining 11 children died of stress and severe internal injuries.

Ian Klopper, an expert in rescue, said officials had maneuvered a ship to search for whale carcasses on floating rocks. However, volunteers must be very careful when searching for whale carcasses in cold waters because sharks often appear there.

The image of the sprawling whales on Kommitjie beach was posted on the front page of many local newspapers yesterday. They started to drift ashore from the morning of May 30. Despite the waves, cold weather and strong winds, several hundred people ran to the beach to help the whales return to the ocean. But every time a few children come to the water, many others will land on the shore.

Initially officials decided to use a truck to bring the whales (each weighing about 1.5 tons) to a naval base in Simons city. But soon the fish's health deteriorated very quickly. So they thought that the only solution was to shoot them in the head to end the pain.

Gunshots rang out as police tried to take curious people away from fish bodies. It rained and caused the scene to become more pitiful. People go to the beach in the hope of seeing a good outcome for the stranded whales. So many people burst into tears when gunshots rang out. Officials advised people to see a psychiatrist if they were shocked and obsessed with the heartbreaking sight they saw.

Nan Rice, an expert in a whale protection organization, said the decision to shoot whales was only made after officials were certain they could not survive overnight. 'We can't let people stay here during the night because it's very cold. In addition, there will be many people taking advantage of the darkness to cut whale meat, ' she explained.

According to Rice, the whales died soon after the bullet hit the head. It is the lightest death for them in that situation. But some people were unconscious after seeing this scene and the police had to take them off the beach.

South Africa's Environment Ministry said the whale carcass was taken to an empty landfill by truck. Scientists will operate fish to study before burying them. The ministry said the cause of whales rushing to the shore has yet to be found.