Rescuers in Germany are racing to try to save the life of a whale stranded in shallow water on the coast.
Diggers have tried to dredge a channel into deeper waters to release the 33ft mammal back into the sea, but the sand was too compacted.
Experts say the chances of saving the humpback are slim, because after three days of being stuck on the beach, it will be exhausted.
The whale, thought to be a young male weighing up to 15 tons, became stranded on Monday on the shore in Lübeck Bay, off Timmendorfer Strand on the north German coastline.
Low tides and stormy weather have hampered rescue efforts, and divers have been into the water to try to assess the animal’s state.
Sven Biertumpfel, of the Sea Shepherd marine conservation group, told Sky News if rescuers cannot move it, it will probably die there. He said it can take “up to a week or even longer” for an animal that size to suffocate.
He said the whale had previously become entangled in a fishing net. Some of the net was cut off, but rope is said to still be stuck in its mouth.
The water off north Germany is less salty than the North Sea or the Atlantic Ocean, so it’s bad for whales’ skin, which could lead to a potentially fatal infection, Mr Biertumpfel said.
“So every minute counts,” he added.
Marine biologist Robert Marc Lehmann told NDR the whale’s skin looked terrible but that the animal was responsive.
“It’s reacting, it has both eyes open, it’s vocalising, but it’s incredibly uncertain and it’s scared,” he said.
Boats from the coastguard and the fire department passed by to create large waves in the hope of freeing the animal, but without success.
Rescuers are reluctant to pull the animal out to deeper water for fear of injuring it.
“I hope the channel is deep enough that material will slide down and that this will motivate the whale to swim in. And if not, then he’ll have to be given a little nudge,” Mr Lehmann said.
