More than 30 pilot whales that washed up on a beach in New Zealand have been safely returned to the ocean.
Conservation workers and residents helped to refloat the whales by lifting them onto sheets to get them back in the water on Sunday (24 November).
Sadly, four of the pilot whales died, New Zealand’s conservation agency said.
A team monitored Ruakākā Beach near the city of Whangārei in New Zealand’s north on Monday to ensure there were no signs of the whales getting stranded again, the Department of Conservation said.
The agency praised the “incredible” the efforts made by hundreds of people to help save the foundering pod.
