Cape residents were gobsmacked when they spotted a massive whale carcass being transported through the streets.
Many took to social media to share their photographs and footage.
The City of Cape Town on Wednesday released details as to how officials were able to successfully and safely remove and dispose of the 35-ton whale carcass from Hout Bay.
"The operation began when the whale carcass was first spotted, early on Saturday morning floating off Kommetjie drifting towards the coast. Due to its size and the potential risks it posed, a swift and coordinated response was required," said City of Cape Town's Alderman Grant Twigg.
Twigg, said coastal management teams were deployed to oversee who the carcass would be retrieved.
He explained that a plan was hatched to tow the carcass to the Hout Bay slipway using a specialised vessel provided by the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) Hout Bay Station.
"The NSRI team worked alongside the City’s Coastal Management officers to ensure the safe towing of the carcass," Twigg said.
I thought it was a weird tree at first. Didn't realise it was a dead whale till it jiggled 🙃 pic.twitter.com/ydLDj7AsE6
— Ronan Irish (@iBeIRISH) November 18, 2024
He said once teams were at the slip way, CoCT's Urban Waste Management Specialised Equipment Services, traffic services and the Corporate Fleet Management team took over to execute the tough task of loading the whale carcass for transporting to the landfill.
"Stabilising the carcass, which was already in an advanced state of decomposition, on the flat bed truck was a very complex challenge. It required all the teams' ingenuity and expertise, especially as the route to landfill included a steep roads and bends section over Constantia Nek," Twigg said.
He said traffic service helped with traffic control while teams transported the giant carcass.
Cleansing teams also helped with the clean up of the slip way cleaning and sweeping the route taken from Hout Bay to the landfill.
"After reaching the landfill, the Disposal team followed the protocol for trenching and it was safely disposed by the staff on site. A trench had been dug in anticipation of the whale's arrival, but had to be widened and lengthened significantly due to the size of the animal. The massive creature measured 14,3 metres; too big to be weighed on the landfill weighbridge, but is estimated to weigh-in at around 35 tons," Twigg said.
He further hailed the co-ordination teams and the driver of the flat bed for their sterling work.
Alderman Twigg thanked the NSRI Hout Bay Station officers for assisting in the operation.
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