A dead humpback whale calf was found caught in the propeller of a tug boat on Tuesday night at the Port of Hay Point, currently the largest coal port on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia.
The tug was towing a vessel, operated by the BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance, to sea about 2.5km to 3km offshore when the crew became aware something was wrong.
The tug returned to its holding vessel at the Hay Point Services Terminal where the deceased animal was discovered still in contact with the vessel, as informed by North Queensland Bulk Ports Corporation.
As informed, it is unknown if the animal died before or during the incident. However, the incident adds fuel to environmental concerns raised by environmentalists regarding the impact of the coal mine operations to the marine life in the region and overall protection of the world’s largest coral reef.
The incident was reported to both state and federal regulators and they will decide if any investigations will take place.
“NQBP has been made aware of an unfortunate incident that occurred at the Port of Hay Point on Tuesday night. As the port authority for the Port of Hay Point NQBP is committed to a responsible environmental approach that seeks to, where possible, prevent, and always to reduce and manage any port impacts on the environment. As such we take incidents such as these seriously and we are assisting the relevant authorities in the management and reporting of the incident,” said a spokesman for North Queensland Bulk Ports Corporation.
The carcass was lifted by crane and removed by truck on September 10.
Image: NOAA