The surviving mammals have been moved to deeper waters but there’s still a risk they could be beached again

Volunteers have helped rescue five of the 150 short-finned pilot whales that became stranded on a beach in Western Australia.



The whales were freed by authorities at Hamelin Bay, south of Perth, with the help of vets and more than 100 volunteers.

The surviving five whales have been moved to deeper waters, but there is still a risk they could return to dry land.

Play Video 0:43 Mass stranding in Australia claims more than 130 whales – video

The Parks and Wildlife Service incident controller Jeremy Chick said whales often came back on to the shore after mass-stranding events.

“We ask the public to keep a lookout and if anyone sees a stranded whale to please report it,” he said.

A sixth whale was freed into shallow waters overnight but it beached again and had to be euthanised.

More than 130 whales die in mass stranding in Western Australia Read more

Authorities continued to sweep the surrounding beaches by air and sea on Saturday.

Rescue efforts were hampered by dead whales in the water, rocky terrain and rough seas at the bay, which is near Augusta.

The carcasses were being removed and authorities were taking DNA samples to understand why the whales beached.

A commercial fisherman spotted the large number of whales on Friday morning.

“I think it’s absolutely incredible. I’ve never seen anything like it, so many whales beached like this,”Barrie Brickle, a tourist, said.

A shark alert has been issued by the Fisheries Department as the whale carcasses could attract the ocean predators.

Hamelin Beach remains closed from Hamelin Caravan Park to North Point.

The biggest mass beaching in WA occurred in 1996 in Dunsborough, when 320 long-finned pilot whales beached themselves.