A group of approximately twelve killer whales, initially trapped by drift ice in the waters near Japan’s northern island, has managed to break free, according to officials.
The stranded orcas were first sighted by a fisherman earlier in the week, nearly a kilometer off the coast of Hokkaido. Drone footage captured the animals clustered closely together, periodically emerging from the water to breathe.
Following public concern spurred by the televised footage, government officials took action, traveling to the seaside town to monitor the situation. Calls for assistance from environmental groups led to petitions urging the Japanese government to deploy an icebreaker to aid the trapped orcas.
However, on Wednesday, officials reported a positive development, stating that their most recent monitoring excursion indicated the whales had moved away from the encumbered area.
“We believe they were able to escape safely,” remarked a local official from the seaside town of Rausu, speculating that the whales may have found openings in the ice through which to navigate.
The footage of the pod, which included younger orcas, revealed signs of bleeding around their jaws, suggesting potential injury incurred during their escape attempts.
According to Japanese media reports, orcas, unlike other large whales, cannot remain submerged for extended periods and need to resurface every few minutes to breathe.
Gary P Hernal started college at UP Diliman and received his BA in Economics from San Sebastian College, Manila, and Masters in Information Systems Management from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University in Oak Brook, IL. He has 25 years of copy editing and management experience at Thomson West, a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters.
