DESTRUCTION ISLAND — A humpback whale that was entangled in crab pot lines is now nowhere to be found.
Rescuers attempted to reach the juvenile whale today after cutting most of the lines Thursday, but could not locate it and have headed back to shore.
The whale was last seen near Destruction Island, which is off the coast of Ruby Beach and north of Kalaloch.
The disentanglement team from Olympia-based Cascadia Research Collective was not able today to get a signal from the tracking device placed on the whale Thursday, said Erin Falcone, a biologist with the group.
A fisherman reported Thursday evening seeing the whale about a mile away from where the team left it.
Falcone said the whale was anchored by the crab pot gear while the team was cutting its lines.
It is apparently no longer anchored, she said, but the gear may get caught on the ocean floor again.
The team was unable to remove the lines around its pectoral fin because the lines were in the water, and unreachable, Falcone said.
“The lines were holding the fin down under the water tight against the body,” Falcone said.
“They couldn’t access it from the surface.”
When the crew returned to finish the job, it brought with it a pole with a hook that was expected to be able to grab the last lines.
Falcone said the crew won’t go back into the water until a signal is picked up or a sighting is reported.
Sightings can be reported to the group at 360-943-7325.
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
