Officials to remove whale carcass offshore from Turtle Bay, Hawaii

Apr 16, 2013

By Star-Advertiser staff

Officials this morning are trying to determine how to remove the carcass of a dead humpback whale calf that was found offshore near Turtle Bay.

        City Department of Emergency ServicesOfficials plan to conduct a necropsy on the dead whale at Hawaii Pacific University’s Hawaii Loa campus.

The state Department of Land and Natural Resources is trying to find a boat to tow the carcass to Haleiwa Boat Harbor. From there, state and city officials hope to get a front-end loader to lift and place the carcass on a flatbed truck to take it to Hawaii Pacific University’s Hawaii Loa campus, where a necropsy will be performed.

Also involved to determine what happened to the animal were officials from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

HPU scientists are still awaiting the results of tests conducted on the mainland to find the cause of death of another humpback whale calf whose carcass washed ashore on the Leeward Coast on March 3.

Results from a necropsy were inconclusive to determine what caused the death of a humpback whale calf that was discovered on the coastline in back of Waianae High School. Scientists estimate the calf died within 24 hours before it was discovered.

The carcass was towed to the Waianae Small Boat Harbor and later taken to HPU, where the necropsy was performed.

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