Published on Friday, 18 October 2024 at 11:31:18 AM
What a whale of a job! Last weekend saw widespread media coverage of the whale carcass found washed ashore at West Beach on Sunday morning. As drone videos of sharks circling and feeding on the carcass was shared across social media, many attempts were made throughout Saturday to work with state authorities and prevent a beaching at the popular swimming and surfing spot.
Locals overwhelmingly share an urgent drive to reduce shark attack risks, after many fatal and serious shark attacks in the area; a very real and immediate motivation not felt by distant state government departments.
Despite strong Shire, Ocean Safety and Support Group, and community lobbying for the ability to proactively deal with the whale carcass while it could be easily and safely accessed in the water, state government regulations meant the carcass could not be touched before it hit land. At this point a whale carcass becomes the responsibility of the relevant land manager, usually a local government. A piece of luck had this carcass stranded in a relatively accessible position, rather than on the unapproachable rocks to the east, or behind the West Beach/Firsties reef.
Once Shire Rangers confirmed on Sunday morning that the whale carcass was beached at Firsties, the Shire’s Shark Hazard Response was triggered, beaches were closed and alerts sent out on the Shire’s communication channels. In an impressive display of community spirit, many private individuals joined the now-responsible Shire to provide invaluable knowledge, equipment and time to solve this whale of a problem.
Phones ran hot as preliminary plans were made (obviously we had a sweet spot in our telecommunications network that day). A meeting was organised at West Beach, where Shire personnel joined Michael from the Ocean Safety and Support Group, Garry from the local DoT office, Charlie from the local DPIRD office, our outstanding Volunteer Marine Rescue group was ably represented by Bryce, Chris from our dedicated Esperance Goldfields Surf Life Saving Club, as well as passionate and concerned locals Cooper, Liam, Rob, Marcus, and David & crew, bringing rigging, drone and rod fishing, and ocean going expertise and equipment with them. Options to remove the carcass were workshopped with personnel safety prioritised, and a plan decided on. While David and his crew manoeuvred their boat into position, Liam and Rob organised a drone and fishing gear, and Cooper, Michael, our Shire CEO Shane and others worked to get rigging around the chewed-up whale - fortunately for all involved, the smell wasn’t too bad!
Radio communication with the boat was constant as a drone was flown out to it carrying fishing trace wire. Once at the boat, sturdy rope was attached to the fishing trace and the long process of wrestling this to shore against the rip with a sturdy beach fishing rod began. Hundreds of onlookers watched this procedure as the rope was hauled to shore and securely fastened to the rigging around the whale carcass. A delicate operation followed, with the boat slowly inching forward to drag the whale carcass off the sand and through the West Beach rip without tearing it apart. A cheer went up from the watchers as it made it safely past the reef and was towed out to sea. While the crowd dispersed, our respected fishing crew, as well as Shire President Ron, spent the rest of the day transporting the carcass 16km out to sea, carefully manoeuvring it into position, and watching it sink below the waves.
What an achievement! We know it’s not just the Shire and Council, but our entire community, heartily thanking all those who helped resolve this dangerous situation within 24 hours of the carcass hitting land – surely an Australian record!
This triumph of commitment, community spirit and cooperation means that, once all traces of oil from the carcass have dispersed, the much-loved West Beach will be freely available for the summer season – once again we thank all our local legends, and look forward to seeing you at the beach!
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