Chioma Umeha
A whale has died in southern Thailand after
swallowing more than 80 plastic bags, Sky News has reported.
The small male pilot whale was found barely alive
in a canal near the border with Malaysia, Thailand’s Department of Marine and
Coastal Resources said.
It vomited up five bags while rescuers used buoys
to keep it afloat in a rescue attempt, while an umbrella was held to protect it
from the blazing sun.
A veterinary team tried “to help stabilise its
illness” but the whale later died on Friday afternoon, officials said.
An autopsy revealed 80 plastic bags weighing up to
eight kilograms (18 pounds) in the creature’s stomach.
Thon Thamrongnawasawat, a marine biologist and
lecturer at Kasetsart University, said the bags had made it impossible for the
whale to eat any nutritional food.
“If you have 80 plastic bags in your stomach, you
die,” he said.
Mr Thamrongnawasawat added that at least 300
marine animals, including pilot whales, sea turtles and dolphins, perish each
year in Thai waters after ingesting plastic.
He said: “It’s a huge problem. We use a lot of
plastic.”
The pilot whale’s plight generated sympathy and
anger among Thai citizens.
