In Pictures: Whale in the Thames
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Whale experts immediately began work on a rescue plan, aware the deep water species would struggle to survive in the shallow, murky fresh water of the Thames. -
After a night hatching their plan, rescuers herded the distressed whale close to the shore near Battersea Bridge to start the rescue attempt. -
Rescuers had to move members of the public away while they waited for an inflatable float to carry the creature away from the rocky foreshore and the growing crowds. (Pic: Neil Wood) -
The rescue attempt had drawn thousands of Londoners to the Thames, while reporters and TV crews flocked to the riverside to broadcast the rescue to viewers across the globe. (Pic: Stephen Knight) -
The whale was towed to a barge which planned to carry the stressed, confused animal back out into the North Sea and hopefully freedom. (Pic: Dan Bachmann) -
But it soon became apparent the animal's stress and the injuries it had received in its unfamiliar environment had taken their toll. (Pic: Neil Wood) -
The desperate race to take the injured cetacean into deep enough water before its injuries proved too much ended sadly, when - still in the Thames - the whale died at about 1900GMT. -
poor thing!
