Rescue ended the story of a bowhead whale calf stuck in shallow water. Who rescued a whale in the Khabarovsk Territory and did they even save a whale in the Sea of \u200b\u200bOkhotsk

On the morning of August 10, a whale was found at the mouth of a river flowing from Lake Bolshoy on Bolshoy Shantar Island in the Khabarovsk Territory. This was reported by representatives of the Directorate of Parks and Reserves "Zapovednoye Priamurye". Presumably, a flock of killer whales drove the whale into the mouth. Due to the fact that the animal hit the bottom with its tail, it was injured, but not dangerous to life. Experts argued that the whale was in serious danger: it could neither turn around nor go out into the lake, because it was in too narrow a place. Scientists believed that the tide would help him. with reference to tjournal, talks about two versions of saving the whale.

Later, reports of the rescue operation began to appear in the media. The regional department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations said that the whale tried to get out on its own, but it did not work. The rescue operation was personally supervised by the head of the Ministry of Natural Resources Sergei Donskoy.

In the evening of the same day, the head of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Sergei Donskoy, published a message that the whale was free.

"The director of the Shantar Islands national park, Vladimir Andronov, just phoned - the whale left the river mouth into the sea with the tide, colleagues escorted it to the edge. They will follow further! The whale was rescued," wrote head of the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources Sergei Donskoy.

Blogger Ruslan Usachev, who was on the island with the expedition "Mamont Cup 2017", said in the video that the official version of the rescue of the whale is different from what actually happened.

"Almost the whole story of saving the whale is a lie. I can say this with confidence, because I was there. The whale ran aground literally in front of our camp. I was brushing my teeth this morning, looking at the whale," blogger Ruslan Usachev wrote.

Possible options for saving the whale. Official version

Experts discussed versions of saving the whale if the tide does not help him and considered different options.

"A variant of using mechanisms for removing the whale is being worked out, we will move it, lift it on the straps. Colleagues are considering all options, such an order has been given. - said the press secretary of the Ministry of Natural Resources Nikolai Gudkov.

Rescue operation. Photo: Ruslan Usachev

Usachev's version

According to Usachev, there were no lifeguards and scientists specializing in marine animals on the island. There were 24 members of the expedition, scientists studying local swamps and employees of the national park.

As he told TJ, the employees of the national park had the option to somehow push the whale with a boat. Whether they discussed other options with the management to save the animal is unknown. The basic plan was to wait for the tide. In the video, he said that the specialists had no way to get to the island.

Think for yourself how they could be there. A whale ran aground in a random stream on a random island. Should a specialist sit on each of the islands in Russia? We don't have that many marine animal specialists. They could not fly there - the weather was bad. Go by boat? We sailed there for six hours, because there was a three-point storm.

Water and fire pumps for the whale. Official version

The press service of the main department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations in the Khabarovsk Territory told Interfax that the employees of the national park poured water on the whale using motor pumps.

Usachev's version

Usachev said that there were no pumps on the island. According to him, the employees of the national park for a long time did not water the whale and did not allow the expedition members to visit it. To take samples of whale skin at the request of the Moscow scientists, with whom one of the travelers contacted, they were also not allowed.

As a result, they poured water on it two times: the first time, when the expedition members "made a noise" and the second time at night, when the whale's eye was above the water and this began to threaten its life.

Another member of the expedition, blogger Sergei Dolya, said that the employees of the national park did nothing for a long time, but later they poured water over the whale's eyes so that they would not dry out. After some time, they also swam to the whale in a boat, went down into the water and watered it.

Whale. Photo: Ruslan Usachev

Helicopter of the Ministry of Emergency Situations aimed at helping rescuers. Official version

Deputy Director for Security environment "Reserved Amur Region" Dmitry Grankin toldthat rescuers on the island do not have enough equipment to get the whale out. There are supposedly only two boats on Bolshoi Shantar, and with their help, the whale can be deployed with a kilometer-long cable. Hardly anyone dared to attach it to the tail of a whale - it weighs almost 70 tons.

The press service of the main department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations in the Khabarovsk Territory said that a helicopter was sent to the island to help rescue the whale. On board was a regional search and rescue squad of rescuers and a task force of the Ministry of Emergencies. They went there to "assess the situation and help save the whale."

At the same time, experts noted that when rescuing a whale using a helicopter, there was a risk of an aircraft crash.

Usachev's version

In the video, Usachev said that the Emergencies Ministry's helicopter never arrived. According to him, these days a typhoon raged in Primorye from Japan and the helicopters of the Ministry of Emergency Situations were sent there.

For execution rescue operations The Ministry of Emergency Situations called all the helicopters to itself. [...] That is, if the Ministry of Emergency Situations helicopter flew in to save the whale, it would not come to save people. [...] As if the house was on fire, and firefighters would save the cat first.

Dramatic story bowhead whale ended successfully. The 30-ton calf, which ran aground at the mouth of a river in the Far East and was actually trapped, nevertheless gained strength and went into the sea at high tide. Rescuers were by his side all the way.

For almost a day, the whale lay in shallow water in the middle of the river. He could neither turn back into the sea, nor move forward, onto the surface of the lake. Trying to get out, the animal was badly injured on the stones.

The whale is about 10 meters long, as determined by experts, is still quite a calf. To prevent the skin from drying out, it is poured with water from the boat. The first came to the aid of the inspectors of the marine reserve - here, in the region of the Shantar Islands, a place far from civilization.

In July 2017, Russian biologists filmed a video off the coast of Kamchatka of a flock of killer whales overtaking a 12-meter whale and preventing him from surfacing in order to gasp for air. The same thing could have happened with this baby.

At 700 kilometers from the scene, rescuers of the Ministry of Emergency Situations from Khabarovsk are gathering for help. They take boats and equipment with them, with which they will try to move the whale. Meanwhile, new messages are coming from the Shantar Islands: the baby has moved 200 meters forward almost crawling on its belly. And again became aground. Fish begin to eat his body.

This reminds many of the story of 30 years ago, when in Alaska three gray whales were stuck in ice, they had to carry out a rescue operation. But one of the giants still died. And years later, the story is filmed.

Meanwhile, on Shantars, scientists were waiting for the tide, only he would help the whale to budge. Travelers from Moscow become witnesses of the drama - they have a tour of the Sea of \u200b\u200bOkhotsk. After a sleepless night, tourists report the long-awaited news.

“A strong tide started at night. In complete darkness and fog, the whale was able to free itself. After the water completely covered him, he swam to the boat of the rescuers, who poured water on him, stood next to her a little, as if saying goodbye, then strongly waved his tail and left along the channel, along the high water towards the sea. Everyone was very worried, of course, here, but now everyone is very happy, ”said eyewitness Sergei Dolya.

Emotions could not be contained by the Russian Minister of Nature Sergei Donskoy. He personally controlled the situation.

“Many thanks to everyone who participated and worried about the grounded whale! The director of the Shantar Islands National Park, Vladimir Andronov, has just phoned - the whale left the mouth of the river into the sea with high tide, colleagues escorted it to the edge. Will follow further! Keith was saved! " - the Minister of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation Sergey Donskoy shared the news.

Dehydration and cuts are the only things that ultimately hurt the whale. But scientists say the wounds will heal quickly - the animal is strong if it could make such a powerful dash.

Tragedy unfolded in front of our camp this morning. At night, the whale entered the channel on which we are standing and got stuck at low tide.

He is now on the rocks. Can't move yet. Already hurt myself in two places. There is blood flowing. We contacted scientists in Moscow studying whales, they said the most important thing is not to pour water into his blowhole and water it over his eyes. From time to time we go to the whale on the boat and check his eyes - they are still under water.

Everyone is very worried and thinking about how to save the whale. There are many ideas, but so far nothing has been realized. We just sit and watch him from the shore. I'm very sorry for him ...

UPD 1.

The tide has begun. The whale is bleeding, but alive. We hope that when the water rises, he can go out to sea. True, today, according to the forecast, the tide of the daily tide is low, so it may not be able to come out. Then let us hope that it will hold out during the evening low tide, and at night there should be a high tide.

The position of scientists and employees of the national park, who stand next to us and watch how the whale suffers, is striking. They do not allow us to do anything either and do not want to take responsibility for themselves.

Scientists from Moscow wrote what needs to be done to alleviate his suffering while he is broke, but they won't let us do it.

And the scientists also wrote: "It will be super cool if you take a piece of skin. Every whale sample for genetics is worth its weight in gold to us."

While the tide was at its maximum, it was possible to safely approach the whale on a boat and take a sample, but local scientists again began to shift responsibility and deny. In general, so no one did it, although we already raised everyone here. It just infuriates that such a unique case could be used, but they - scientists - did not use it. Cited the fact that they are bog scientists and study botany, not whales.

UPD 2.

Letter from scientists:

"Dear Rimma Sabirovna and Sergei, I saw a photo of a whale. This is not an adult whale, and even" not young ", this is a cub !! It is probably no more than 5-6 m in length. Although the tail is worth being careful of, it is certainly he can and SHOULD be helped. Of course, you can approach and deploy a cub of this size. These are such annoying misunderstandings when communicating. I was told "young" in the telephone conversation, but "young" (even one year old) differs from that it has a size of under 9 m. And you can't do anything physically with such an animal. In general, please allow the tourists to unfold the cub. The tourists were not even allowed to come up and take skin samples. Not like watering the whale! on the fact that the NP staff will provide all possible assistance. Now, regarding the situation in general: it is so tiny that he should be with his mother. If he can be taken out to sea at high tide, then do not go on boats around him, do not litter the sea with noise . When he is at sea, you will do nothing. That is, all your actions will be excluded. curiosity. And you need to provide an opportunity for him to find a mother (or she - his). So the less noise in the water, the more chances. Please keep in touch "

UPD. 3

Finally, we managed to persuade the "bog scientists" to do at least something. They went to the whale and poured water over his eyes. Normal scientists wrote to us from Moscow that it is very important that his eyes do not dry out and that water should be poured on them.

And so, they stand side by side and discuss the whale and laugh at the bloggers. Like we are in vain for the whale and the science are worried. Scraps of their phrases reach us. They are such heroes themselves. Disgusting ...

UPD. 4

The tide has passed. He turned out to be small. The whale did not move. The tide has begun. The water goes away very quickly. Small fish gnaw whale - take a closer look at the photo.

The leadership of the National Park categorically forbade us to approach the whale and how to either help direct it to the exit from the channel or take samples. To do this, it was necessary to tie a washcloth to an oar and rub the whale. But the leadership of the National Park told the local huntsman, who is in control of the situation, that he did not pay attention to the "bloggers' panic" and did not give any samples.

They write to me in the comments that on the news they tell about the pump from which they water the whale - a lie. They did bring the pump, but they decided not to water the whale from it, as they were afraid to get into the blowhole.

In general, the situation is difficult. The whale stays in place until the next tide.

UPD. five

It's twilight. It gets dark. The water continues to drain. The whale doesn't even twitch anymore. I'm tired. He just lies there and sometimes "sighs" loudly. Still nobody does anything. They just sit on the beach and watch.

For the press, thanks to everyone who covers this issue and helps to influence the leadership of the National Park. My telegram @sergeydolya - write there. I have here satellite Internet and cellular communication no.

UPD. 6

Very strong ebb. The whale is dry. Nobody does anything or give us anything. An eerie sight. We can just go into the water in rubber boots and at least start watering it, but the representatives of the park won't let us do that!

In general, we are all in shock here. I'm very sorry for the whale. If during the day we still hoped for a happy outcome, now the hope is gone ...

UPD. 7

Hooray! National Park staff Started to act. They lowered the boat and approached the whale. We jumped into the icy water and watered the whale, first on one side, and then on the other.

They risked their lives greatly, as the whale began to move and could kill them with its tail. Real heroes! Real men!

Thanks to everyone who supported and repost this news! We were able to get through!

Now there is a chance that the whale will live to see the tide, which starts in three hours.

As the situation changes, I will update the post ...

Rescue operation 13 meter bowhead whale, stuck in shallow water in the riverbed, is held on Bolshoi Shantar Island in the Khabarovsk Territory. According to experts, the animal could enter the river during the night tide, fleeing the killer whales.

Experts expect to return the whale to the Sea of \u200b\u200bOkhotsk at night. Options are being worked out to free the mammal in case the tide does not help. After the animal returns to the sea, it is planned to escort it to a safe distance from the coast to avoid meeting with killer whales. The situation is personally controlled by the head of the Ministry of Natural Resources Sergei Donskoy.

On the island of Bolshoy Shantar in the Khabarovsk Territory, an operation is underway to rescue a 13-meter bowhead whale, which is stuck in the riverbed of the lake. Rescue work is carried out by employees of the joint directorate of state nature reserves and national parks of the Khabarovsk Territory "Zapovednoye Priamurye".

The situation is personally controlled by the head of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Sergei Donskoy, who is reported on the progress of the operation. According to the minister, experts are working on options for returning the animal to natural environment habitat. It is planned to do this during the night tide.

“Now the animal is in a normal state, although it has gone through stress. National park employees water the whale with water from fire-fighting pumps to avoid dehydration, ”the press service of the Ministry of Natural Resources said.

The stuck whale was discovered by the district inspector of the Shantar Islands National Park Vladimir Kapral during the night watch. He immediately informed the director of the Federal State Budgetary Institution "Zapovednoye Priamurye" Vladimir Andronov that a 13-meter bowhead whale entered the mouth of the river flowing from Lake Bolshoy on Bolshoy Shantar Island during the night tide.

At the same time, the Federal State Budgetary Institution "Zapovednoye Priamurye", which includes the Shantar Islands National Park, reported that a powerful animal could "neither turn around, nor enter the lake."

It is noted that after the receipt of information about the stuck animal, all the forces and means necessary to save the whale were involved.

Experts expect that they will be able to return the whale to the big water at night and escort it to a safe distance from the coast to avoid encountering killer whales. According to experts, fleeing from these predators, the whale was forced to enter the river bed.

The Ministry of Natural Resources said that all work is being carried out jointly with specialists in the rescue of marine mammals, including experts from the Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution.

Specialists are also working on options for freeing the whale in case the tide does not help it. This information was reported to TASS by the press secretary of the Ministry of Natural Resources Nikolai Gudkov.

“A variant of using mechanisms for hatching a whale is being studied. We will move it, lifting it on the straps, ”Gudkov said.

“Colleagues are considering all options - such an order has been given. But the most humane thing is to take the whale out during the night tide. We hope that he will be able to turn around or back out, ”added the spokesman for the department.

Earlier, Dmitry Grankin, deputy director of the Amur Nature Reserve Federal State Budgetary Institution, said that more than 20 people help a stuck whale to get out into the Sea of \u200b\u200bOkhotsk.

"Employees of the National Park, the Institute of Water and Environmental Problems of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, who literally the day before arrived on the island with other purposes, but joined in the rescue, as well as caring tourists, are trying to send him to the exit from the channel," RIA Novosti quotes Grankin.

But mostly experts hope for the tide that will come on the night of August 11. Olga Shpak, a researcher at the Institute of Ecology and Evolution, told TASS that if the night tide is not enough, then everything can end tragically.

“Most likely, there were killer whales somewhere. The whales hide from them, snuggling very close to the shore. It is possible that this whale walked along the coastal edge, hiding from the killer whales, and entered the channel during full tide, ”the expert outlined the likely course of events.

“Now we have to hope for another night tide. In this place, there are two tides a day: one was already there, but it is lower, it was not enough for the whale to surface. Now there will be a higher tide - at four in the morning Khabarovsk time (21:00 Moscow time on August 10). If it is not enough, then with a high probability everything will end sadly, "Shpak noted.

By coincidence, a popular travel blogger Sergei Dolya appeared on the island of Bolshoy Shantar, who said that while trying to free himself, the whale received several wounds.

Share added that the daytime tide was negligible and the animal was unable to free itself. He confirmed that rescuers were expecting the night tide and posted footage of the trapped whale.

Shantar Islands - the Russian archipelago in the Sea of \u200b\u200bOkhotsk, which includes 15 islands with a total area of \u200b\u200babout 2500 km². The archipelago is home to about 240 bird species, 30 of which are included in the Red Book of Russia. The waters around the islands are frozen for about eight months of the year.

In 1999, the Shantar Islands, together with the water area, were included in the eponymous state nature reserve of federal significance, and in 2013 the Shantar Islands National Park was formed.

A whale stranded in the Khabarovsk Territory has been released. Now he is already leaving for the open sea.

Posted by Sergey Dolya (@sergeydolya) Aug 10 2017 at 6:40 PDT

The Emergencies Ministry and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment have their own official version of events. Blogger Ruslan Usachev, who was on the island, had a different one.

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Photo by Ruslan Usachev

On the morning of August 10, a whale was found at the mouth of a river flowing from Lake Bolshoy on Bolshoy Shantar Island in the Khabarovsk Territory. This was reported by representatives of the Directorate of Parks and Reserves "Zapovednoye Priamurye".

Presumably, a flock of killer whales drove the whale into the mouth. Due to the fact that the animal hit the bottom with its tail, it was injured, but not life-threatening. Experts argued that the whale was in serious danger: it could neither turn around nor go out into the lake, because it was in too narrow a place. Scientists believed that the tide would help him.

Later, reports of the rescue operation began to appear in the media. The regional department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations said that the whale tried to get out on its own, but it did not work. The rescue operation was personally supervised by the head of the Ministry of Natural Resources Sergei Donskoy.

In the evening of the same day, the head of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Sergei Donskoy, published a message that the whale was free.

The director of the Shantar Islands National Park, Vladimir Andronov, has just phoned - the whale left the mouth of the river into the sea with high tide, colleagues escorted it to the brim. Will follow further! Keith was saved!

Sergey Donskoy

Head of the Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia

Blogger Ruslan Usachev, who was on the island with the expedition "Mamont Cup 2017", stated in the video that the official version of the rescue of the whale differs from what actually happened.

Almost the whole story of saving the whale is a lie. I can say this with confidence, because I was there. Keith ran aground literally in front of our camp. I brushed my teeth this morning, looking at the whale.

Ruslan Usachev

Possible options for saving the whale. Official version

Experts discussed versions of saving the whale if the tide does not help it, and considered different options.

A variant of using mechanisms for removing the whale is being worked out, we will move it, lift it on the straps. Colleagues are considering all options, such an order has been given. But the most humane thing is to take the whale out during the night tide. We hope he can turn around or back out.

Nikolay Gudkov

Press Secretary of the Ministry of Natural Resources

Photo by Ruslan Usachev

Usachev's version

According to Usachev, there were no lifeguards and scientists specializing in marine animals on the island. There were 24 members of the expedition, scientists studying local swamps, and employees of the national park.

As he told TJ, the employees of the national park had the option to somehow push the whale with a boat. Whether they discussed other options with the management to save the animal is unknown. The basic plan was to wait for the tide. In the video, he said that the specialists had no way to get to the island.

Think for yourself how they could be there. A whale ran aground in a random stream on a random island. Should a specialist sit on each of the islands in Russia? We don't have that many marine animal specialists. They could not fly there - the weather was bad. Go by boat? We sailed there for six hours, because there was a three-point storm.

Ruslan Usachev

Water and fire pumps for the whale. Official version

The press service of the main department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations in the Khabarovsk Territory told Interfax that the employees of the national park poured water on the whale using motor pumps.

Usachev's version

Usachev said that there were no pumps on the island. According to him, the employees of the national park did not water the whale for a long time and did not let the expedition members visit it. To take samples of whale skin at the request of the Moscow scientists, with whom one of the travelers contacted, they were also not allowed.

As a result, they poured water on it twice: the first time, when the members of the expedition "made a noise", and the second time already at night, when the whale's eye was above the water and this began to threaten his life.

Another member of the expedition, blogger Sergei Dolya, said that the employees of the national park did nothing for a long time, but later they poured water over the whale's eyes so that they would not dry out. After some time, they also swam to the whale in a boat, went down into the water and watered it.

National Park employees water the whale. Photo by Ruslan Usachev

Helicopter of the Ministry of Emergency Situations aimed at helping rescuers. Official version

Dmitry Grankin, deputy director for environmental protection of the "Reserved Amur Region", says that the rescuers on the island do not have enough equipment to pull the whale out. There are supposedly only two boats on Bolshoi Shantar, and with their help, the whale can be deployed with a kilometer-long cable. Hardly anyone dared to attach it to the tail of a whale - it weighs almost 70 tons.

The press service of the main department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations in the Khabarovsk Territory said that a helicopter was sent to the island to help rescue the whale. On board was a regional search and rescue squad of rescuers with a task force from the Ministry of Emergencies. They went there to "assess the situation and help save the whale."

At the same time, experts noted that when rescuing a whale using a helicopter, there was a risk of an aircraft crash.

Usachev's version

In the video, Usachev said that the Emergencies Ministry's helicopter never arrived. According to him, these days a typhoon raged in Primorye from Japan and the helicopters of the Ministry of Emergency Situations were sent there.

To carry out rescue operations, the Ministry of Emergency Situations called all helicopters to itself. [...] That is, if the Ministry of Emergency Situations helicopter flew to save the whale, it would not come to save people. [...] As if the house was on fire, and the firemen would save the cat in the first place.