Ammon News - Dozens of pilot whales have been found stranded on a beach in New Zealand's North ​Island and rescuers are trying to refloat a ‌handful of the survivors, the country's conservation department said on Thursday.

At least 20 pilot whales were stranded along the ​Ngawi coast near Cape Palliser, the southern-most point ​of the North Island, the Department of ⁠Conservation said.

The department said it was working with ​local iwi - a Maori tribe - and Project Jonah, a ​group that specialises in rescuing stranded whales. Two whales have been successfully refloated so far.

Locals said up to 50 whales ​had been stranded on the coastline overnight, Radio ​New Zealand reported.

Most succumbed to their injuries and volunteers were trying ‌to ⁠keep survivors alive and hydrated using buckets of water and towels.

"It's horrible. The ones that are alive are on their last breaths," Ngawi local Rob ​Bargh told Radio ​New Zealand.

In ⁠a post on Facebook on Thursday, Project Jonah said four whales were alive ​and rescuers would try to refloat them ​during ⁠high tide.

Whale strandings are fairly common in New Zealand and neighbouring Australia owing to large populations of ⁠pilot whales ​living in the deep oceans ​surrounding both island nations. The cause of whale stranding is unknown.


Reuters