ABC News: Next Up for Lost Whales: Fire Hoses
Another use for fire hose....
Rescuers Plan to Use Fire Hoses to Coax 2 Wayward Whales Back to Pacific
Marine biologists said Thursday that they planned to spray fire hoses in a river near two lost, injured whales in the next attempt to coax the pair back toward salt water.
The method has never been tried before, and biologists don't know how the whales will respond Friday. If the whales like the spray, crews will try to lure them back to the ocean; if they hate it, they'll try to force them there.
Biologists planned to spray near the whales both above water and underwater from the deck of a boat on the Sacramento River. The approach comes after attempts to lead them back to sea using the sounds of clanging pipes, feeding humpbacks and killer orcas failed.
The mother whale and her calf were last spotted about 70 miles from the ocean, in an area of the Sacramento River where they have been circling for several days, said Carrie Wilson, a biologist with the state Department of Fish and Game.
