It took 80 people to rescue a malnourished beluga whale trapped in the River Seine
JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER/AFP via Getty Images
- 80 people rescued a beluga whale trapped in the River Seine, according to French news channel BFM-TV.
- The AFP News Agency reported the whale was first spotted in the river on August 2.
- French officials haven't been able to determine how the whale ended up in the Seine.
It took 80 people to rescue a malnourished beluga whale trapped in the River Seine, according to French news channel BFM-TV.
The BBC reported the 80-person operation included divers, vets, and police officers. French officials haven't been able to determine how the whale ended up in the Seine, considering its arctic habitat, the outlet reported.
"It's a long rescue operation, very technical, which required many skills," Isabelle Dorliat-Pouzet, secretary general of the Eure prefecture, told the BBC.
JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER/AFP via Getty Images
The BBC said a crowd gathered on the banks of the river at Saint-Pierre-La-Garenne in Normandy to watch the rescue unfold.
French officials tried a number of things to stimulate the beluga's appetite, including offering it a vitamin cocktail and feeding it frozen herring, but nothing seemed to work, according to the news outlet.
The AFP News Agency reported the whale was first spotted in the river on August 2.
In May, a killer whale was found dead in the French waterway. It had become ill with mucormycosis, a rare but serious disease that causes a fungal infection.
According to the National Marine Fisheries Service, belugas aren't endangered, but they are vulnerable to a number of stressors which include pollution, habitat degradation, and other types of human disturbance.