54 years later, Florence’s exploding whale still a lesson on what not to do

A blast that’s been talked about for decades.

It’s been 54 years since dynamite was used in an attempt to remove a dead whale that washed up on a Florence beach.

Crowds gathered on the beach to watch including KATU’s very own reporter Paul Linnman and photojournalist, Doug Brazil.

Linnman reported that Oregon’s highway division decided the carcass couldn’t be burned, buried or cut up.

"So dynamite it was, some 20 some cases or a half ton of it," Linnman reports.

The hope was to have the 8 ton carcass disintegrate into small pieces for scavengers to eat.

That was not the case.

When the explosion happened, huge chunks of blubber and a heavy mist were sprayed into the air.

No one was hurt, but one chunk of blubber flattened a car after the explosion.

"Should a whale ever wash ashore in Lane County again, those in charge will not only remember what to do, they’ll certainly remember what not to do," Linnman said.

KATU News spoke with the Oregon State Parks who is now in charge of any whales that wash ashore.

"When we’re notified of a whale carcass, we call the West Coast Marine Mammal Stranding Network, and the public can also call this hotline to report a dead, injured or stranded marine mammal," Stefanie Knowlton, Oregon State Parks PIO said.

Knowlton says that they sometimes have to put up barriers to keep people from getting too close.

Next, NOAA will perform a necropsy, an animal autopsy, and the mammal will decompose in the spot it was found.

"Sea birds, eagles, other birds of prey all rely on marine mammal carcasses and use them for survival. So whenever possible, we like to leave the whale and let nature take its course," says Knowlton.

They utilized these new procedures just a few months ago.

https://katu.com/news/local/54-years-later-florences-exploding-whale-still-a-lesson-on-what-not-to-do

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Author: KATU News
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News post in at: November 14, 2024, 3:02 am.

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