Diver happy to play a role in whale rescue

[Mr T.]

Diver happy to play a role in whale rescue

By Helen Bamford and Igsaan Salie
July 31 2005 at 03:02PM

In a death-defying act of heroism at sea, a Cape Town police diver saved a southern right whale from a long and lingering death by cutting away about 60kg of rope and buoys entangled around the mammal.

He did so while being pulled through the water by the whale in an adrenalin-fuelled rescue off Gordon's Bay on Saturday.

Eben Lourens, who modestly played down his part in the daring operation, was at times only a metre from the whale's tail while cutting off the huge bundle of crayfish trap ropes.

'A lot goes through your mind at times like that'

"It's not something I'd done before so the adrenalin was pumping through me. But it was very satisfying afterwards," he told Sunday Argus.

The drama started about 11am when the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) received a call about an entangled whale, estimated to be about 12m long, which had been spotted from the whale lookout point at Gordon's Bay.

Stuart Burgess, the NSRI station commander at Gordon's Bay, said he contacted Marine and Coastal Management for advice, who in turn called the police dive unit.

The NSRI, including Burgess and three police divers, headed out to the whale which was about a mile offshore and stopped close to it. Burgess said that as soon as they turned the boat's engine off, the whale turned and swam right up to them - so close it bumped the boat.

"We could see the ropes and buoys entangled around the tail and the pieces trailing behind her."

'You cannot swim up to a whale and try to cut it loose'

The team met up with Marine and Coastal Management inspector Justin Enslin - who was fishing in the area - and he offered to take Lourens closer to the whale in his smaller boat.

Once Lourens was in the water he grabbed hold of one of the trailing ropes and pulled himself forward while the whale was swimming. When he got close to the tail he managed to cut off the ropes and buoys.

"A lot goes through your mind at times like that," he said, adding that the risk had been worth it when he saw the whale swimming in a more relaxed way immediately afterwards.

Police diver David Lehr said that most of the rope had been removed, although there was still a bit wrapped around the tail which they hoped would come off on its own.

"An enormous bundle of thick, yellow nylon rope was removed," said Lehr. Police spokesperson Elliot Siyangana confirmed the success of the operation.

Burgess said commercial crayfishers regularly left their nets behind.

"We find them all the time. In one afternoon recently we found four of them."

He said it was not only hazardous for whales but for boats as well, especially at night.

Burgess said the whale had been spotted a number of times in recent weeks but this was the first time a rescue mission had been attempted.

"It was absolutely awesome but I wouldn't recommend any member of the public try it because, even though the whale was not aggressive, they are so big and powerful they could injure someone unintentionally," said Burgess.

Last year a team of navy divers successfully saved a juvenile southern right whale which nearly drowned after being entangled in crayfish nets and ropes near Cape Point.

Nan Rice, of the Save the Whales Campaign in South Africa said that although she was pleased the whale had been freed, she strongly warned against divers copying what she called "foolhardy" behaviour.

"It is very dangerous to attempt such a thing without the proper equipment and tools.

"The public must take note and not try and do this by themselves. You cannot swim up to a whale and try to cut it loose. It is extremely dangerous."

She said that Lourens was "very lucky" to have freed the whale without being injured. In an attempted whale rescue in New Zealand, a diver was killed while attempting to cut the mammal free from a net.

"The whale slammed its tail down on top of him and he was gone. I feel that human lives are just as valuable as those of animals, and I don't think it is right to risk one for the other," said Rice.