A desperate rescue is under way after a baby whale was left stranded along the River Thames today.
The Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) have been joined by two fire crews and the British Divers Marine Life Rescue to help rescue the aquatic mammal which was first spotted floating in Richmond Lock, south west London, at around 7.30pm.
The scenes come just hours after crowds of concerned spectators gathered along the river as rescuers began checking the infant’s vitals and hosed the animal – which is believed to be a minke- down with water at the river’s edge.
The beached whale, which is around 10-13ft long, was spotted earlier in the day swimming in the Thames under Barnes Bridge before it became stranded in Richmond.
Rescue teams arrived to Richmond Lock, south west London , after the whale, believed to be a minke, was spotted
The Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) have been joined by two fire crews and the British Divers Marine Life Rescue
A man sprays the baby whale with water after it was spotted stranded along the River Thames today
A spokesman for the Port of London Authority, which owns the lock, said: ‘At around 7pm on Sunday, a small whale, approximately 3-4m long, believed to be a minke whale, became stranded at Richmond Lock and Weir.
‘PLA staff have attempted to assist the whale with water along with British Divers Marine Life Rescue.
‘The whale is still alive and the Metropolitan Police are working to keep the public away from the water’s edge.’
Jake Manketo, 20, from Richmond, told Sky News: ‘Everyone here is just hoping they get it out.
‘We couldn’t believe our eyes when we first saw the poor fella, not every day something like this happens in Richmond.’
Earlier today, Richard Frank, who is at the scene in Richmond Lock, said: ‘Seems to be a baby whale stuck by Richmond Lock Bridge… Poor thing. Being looked after by the lock keepers and waiting for experts to arrive.’
He added: ‘Not moving a lot, but honestly no idea. At least someone has arrived who looks like they might know what they’re doing health wise, but with low tide still to come it looks pretty tough to me.’
While another added: ‘This is one very very lost whale. It’s gone through the whole of London to Richmond Lock.’
Meanwhile another wrote on social media: ‘There’s a beached whale in the #Thames in #Richmond.’
And another added: ‘Whale stuck at Richmond lock bridge!’
The scenes come after a team of rescuers were sent out to recover a sperm whale that died after getting caught in the Thames estuary last year.
In February 2020, a small team on a Forth Linesman boat set out to recover the creature as it lay washed up on the Spitend Marshes on the Isle of Sheppey in Swale, Kent.
Crowds of spectators have gathered along the river in Richmond Lock, south west London , after the aquatic mammal was spotted
The aquatic mammal – which is normally found in deep waters- was spotted floating in the waters earlier this afternoon
Rescuers tend to the infant whale as they wait for a team of marine experts to arrive
A woman tends to the baby mammal after it was found stranded in Richmond Lock
The British Divers Marine Life Rescue – who had been keeping a close eye on the creature – said it likely died of ‘natural causes’ brought on by starvation, after it appeared underweight and had scarring.
The whale was found stranded and dead just before midday on February 1, the British Divers Marine Life Rescue confirmed.
The whale had appeared confused and was changing direction regularly when swimming around mudflats in north Kent.
Its body was later secured for examination by the Cetacean Stranding Investigation Programme as they tried to establish why the ocean-going animal had come into the Thames estuary.
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In 2019, a humpback whale, nicknamed Hessy, died in the Thames just 11 days after it was first sighted.
The juvenile female had been travelling back and forth over a stretch of five miles after it was first sighted near Dartford Bridge in Kent before it was found dead by rescuers.
Concerned social media users took to Twitter after the whale was found in the Thames
A detailed postmortem examination later found the mammal was ‘nutritionally compromised’ while experts found a heavy burden of parasites within the humpback’s intestine.
Meanwhile in November 2019, a minke whale was found washed up underneath London’s Battersea Bridge.
The carcass was found underneath the bridge by a Port of London Authority (PLA) patrol boat.
The PLA, who estimated that the whale measured around 26ft (eight metres) long, later moved the whale to one of its facilities in east London where a specialist team at ZSL London Zoo carried out a post-mortem to establish a cause of death.
Earlier that same year, Benny the beluga, who rose to national fame when he was spotted in 2018, was spotted in the River Thames at Gravesend, Kent.
Officials said the animal could have followed the fish which migrate out of the estuary early in the year.
