Dozens of pilot whales stranded on NZ’s North Island

Dozens of pilot whales have been found stranded on a beach in New Zealand’s North Island and rescuers were trying to refloat a handful of the survivors, the New Zealand Department of Conservation said yesterday.

At least 20 pilot whales were stranded along the Ngawi coast near Cape Palliser, the southern-most point of the North Island, the department said.

The department said it was working with iwi — a Maori tribe — and Project Jonah, a group that specializes in rescuing stranded whales. Two whales have been successfully refloated so far.

A school group assists Project Jonah staff to rescue a pilot whale after a large pod of whales were stranded over night in Cape Palliser, New Zealand, yesterday.

Photo: AFP

Locals said that up to 50 whales had been stranded on the coastline overnight, Radio New Zealand reported.

Most succumbed to their injuries and volunteers were trying to keep survivors alive and hydrated using buckets of water and towels.

“It’s horrible. The ones that are alive are on their last breaths,” Ngawi local Rob Bargh told Radio New Zealand.

Project Jonah yesterday wrote on Facebook that four whales were alive and rescuers would try to refloat them during high tide.

Whale strandings are fairly common in New Zealand and neighboring Australia owing to large populations of pilot whales living in the deep oceans surrounding both island nations. The cause of whale stranding is unknown.