Second whale dies in Firth of Forth

A SECOND whale to become trapped in the Firth of Forth in the past week has been put down by vets.

Picture: Ian Georgeson

The coastguard were alerted just before 8am today to the animal, a 14-15ft minke whale, which was in difficulty at Torry Bay, near Crombie Point in Fife.

A coastguard team, fire crews and members of the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) headed to the scene to assess the situation. A vet also headed to the area to examine the whale, and eventually took the decision to put it down.

The BDMLR confirmed the whale had passed away at the scene.

Picture: Ian Georgeson

Stephen Marsh, British Divers Marine Life Rescue operations manager, said: “The decision has been to euthanise the whale.”

Scottish Fire and Rescue Service were asked at around 9.35am to attend the scene and hose down the whale.

Earlier this week a pilot whale stranded in shallow water died despite efforts to save it.

The animal died naturally in water in the Silverknowes area of Edinburgh, to the east of Cramond Island in the Firth of Forth.

Three attempts were made to refloat the animal but it died at around 5pm on Tuesday.