Whale carcass washes up near popular NSW beach, attracting sharks
Officials have scrambled to remove a seven-metre humpback whale carcass after it washed up on a New South Wales beach today.
Port Kembla Beach, near Wollongong, was closed after a number of sharks were sighted in the area.
The carcass had been floating off the coast for a few days before becoming beached.
Officials from the Organisation for the Rescue and Research of Cetaceans in Australia (ORRCA) were on-site to assess the risk.
It’s not known how the animal died, Vice President of ORRCA Jooles Farrell told 9news.com.au.
“It’s hard to say at this stage because it’s so decomposed, we couldn’t do a necropsy,” she said.
Ms Farrell confirmed the whale was being towed away from the shallows by Wollongong Council with the help of NSW water police “as we speak”.
“It will be will towed into the harbour to remove the threat to public,” she said.
“From there it will go into landfill so it doesn’t become a marine hazard.”
Wollongong City Council told 9news.com.au residents should avoid swimming in the area.
“As there was some shark activity around the carcass we immediately closed Port Kembla Beach,” a spokesperson said in a statement.
“We put up shark warning signage at Port Kembla, Fisherman’s and MM Beach to advise swimmers and surfers that we strongly recommend they do not enter the water in this precinct until further notice.
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“We will continue to monitor this activity over the coming days, and will look to reopen the beach once it is deemed safe.“
