Overview
- A 13-metre humpback that washed ashore was lifted by a 72-tonne crane, wrapped and moved onto a truck for burial in landfill after being dragged nearer the surf club for the lift.
- City Beach, Floreat Beach and nearby Cottesloe remain closed with no firm reopening date as fisheries teams continue to detect and tag white sharks in the area.
- An earlier attempt to move the carcass failed because the hired excavator could not lift it and the whale lost fluids, reducing estimated weight from about 31 tonnes to roughly 18 tonnes and complicating the operation.
- Scientists and fisheries staff have taken measurements, shared underwater footage and tagged several sharks to guide safety decisions, and experts say smell and fluids can leach into sand and water for several tide cycles which may keep sharks nearby for days to about a week.
- The Town of Cambridge expects the removal to cost up to about $100,000, has diverted staff to the response, and is warning the public not to approach the site or fly drones with possible $250 fines for infringements.