Arabic version: رفع جثة حوت من شاطئ سيتي بيتش لنقلها إلى مكب نفايات
According to ABC News, a decomposing humpback whale carcass that washed up at Perth’s City Beach on Monday is being removed after more than three days on the shoreline. A 72-tonne crane hired by the Town of Cambridge began lifting the 13-metre carcass at about 10am on Thursday while dozens of spectators watched from a distance.
The beach remained closed after contractors spent the previous day preparing to shift the whale. An earlier attempt failed because an excavator was not strong enough to move the mammal, which initially weighed 31 tonnes. The carcass now weighs about 18 tonnes after losing fluid in recent days.
The whale was wrapped in a net late on Wednesday and dragged 1.5 kilometres along the shore to the surf club, where it remained overnight. Town of Cambridge Mayor Gary Mack said the plan was for the carcass to be lifted onto a truck and taken to landfill. He estimated the operation would cost the town $100,000.
Mr Mack said towing the whale back out to sea was not the removal method preferred by government agencies, citing concerns that the carcass could attract sharks and break into pieces that might remain in the ocean. Sharks have been seen near the coastline since the whale arrived, including some close to shore. A tagged white shark was detected six times at Scarborough, about four kilometres up the coast, between 5:55am and 7:17am on Thursday.
City Beach and Floreat Beach remain closed, as do beaches in the nearby Town of Cottesloe. Mr Mack said it could be days before the beaches reopen because sharks were likely to remain in the area.
