Residents of Cape Town were treated to an unusual sight on Sunday morning: a humpback whale making an unexpected posthumous “road trip” through the streets of Hout Bay and Constantia. The whale had been found washed up on Hout Bay beach, and local authorities acted quickly to remove the carcass to prevent potential hazards for both beachgoers and marine life.
City officials promptly removed the whale from the beach to avoid creating an unpleasant situation, as decomposing whale carcasses can pose significant dangers. As Kate Gerber-Furmie, a local Facebook user, explained, “The reason they (the City) remove dead whales from the beach is because when they decompose, their bellies distend with gas and then explode, sending whale pieces for miles.”
The phenomenon of “exploding whale carcasses” is indeed a real and hazardous issue. As whales decompose, gases build up in their bodies, which can cause them to rupture, scattering whale remains over a wide area. This makes it essential for authorities to remove dead whales from popular beach areas promptly to ensure public safety and avoid attracting predators, such as sharks.
While this incident may have seemed strange to some, whale strandings are not uncommon along South Africa’s Western Cape. Whales often wash ashore for various reasons, including navigational errors, old age, or attempts to escape predators like orcas. In fact, just earlier this month, two whales were reported stranded in Simon’s Town and another was found at Cape St Martin.
The sight of the whale being hauled through the streets of Cape Town quickly caught the attention of locals, who took to social media to share the bizarre scene. One Reddit user, u/thorGOT, humorously remarked, “Due to climate change, they can no longer swim around the eastern side of the mountain, and so rely on flatbed trucks for overland transport.”
When whales wash ashore in Cape Town, the city follows established protocols to deal with these rare events. Typically, beached whales are either transported to designated landfills, processed for research, or used for educational purposes. The handling of such incidents is crucial to ensuring that public safety is maintained and the marine ecosystem is not disrupted.
As u/Mightbealpharius noted on Reddit, whale carcasses are often moved for these purposes, emphasizing the balance between conservation efforts and public safety.
This particular humpback whale’s “journey” through the city quickly became a talking point for locals, turning an ordinary Sunday into an unforgettable event. For those lucky enough to witness it, it’s a story that will likely be shared for years to come, as the city continues to manage whale strandings and protect both its residents and the marine environment.
