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Rescuers in Australia freed a young humpback whale after it got tangled in shark nets off the coast of New South Wales state on Wednesday.

Local media reported that a team from the National Parks and Wildlife Service and several other rescuers worked for several hours to free the whale in rough seas, as its mother tried to keep it afloat.

“She (whale’s mother) wasn’t as much aggressive, she was more concerned about the safety of her baby and was trying to keep it afloat,” said David Menzies-Jackson of the New South Wales State National Parks and Wildlife Service.

The whale was trapped at Soldiers Beach, near Norah Head, off the state’s central coast.

The calf and its mother were last spotted swimming away southwards for the summer, according to local media.

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