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| In this Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2013 photo provided by Marina Lacasse, killer whales surface through a small hole in the ice near Inukjuak, in Northern Quebec. Mayor Peter Inukpuk urged the Canadian government Wednesday to send an icebreaker as soon as possible to crack open the ice and help the pod of about a dozen orcas find open water. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans said it is sending officials to assess the situation. |
MONTREAL (AP) -- A community in Quebec's Far North is calling for outside help to free about a dozen killer whales trapped under a vast stretch of sea ice.
Locals in Inukjuak said the mammals have
gathered around a single hole in the ice - slightly bigger than a pickup
truck - in a desperate bid to get oxygen.
Mayor
Peter Inukpuk urged the Canadian government Wednesday to send an
icebreaker as soon as possible to crack open the ice and help them find
open water. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans said it is sending
officials to assess the situation.
"Fisheries
and Oceans Canada is assessing the situation and are exploring every
possible option, but will only be in a position to determine what - if
anything - can be done once our specialists arrive on site," spokesman
Frank Stanek said in a statement.
A hunter
first spotted the pod of about a dozen trapped whales Tuesday at the
hole, which is on the eastern shore of the Hudson Bay. Inukjuak is about
1,500 kilometers (900 miles) north of Montreal.
Dozens
of villagers made the one-hour snowmobile ride Tuesday to see the
unusual spectacle. They snapped photos and shot video footage of the
killer whales surfacing in the opening - and even thrusting themselves
skyward while gasping for air.
One woman who
made the journey to the gap in the ice said even a curious polar bear
approached the hole amid the commotion. Siasie Kasudluak said the bear
was shot by a local hunter for its meat.
The trapped orcas appeared to be in distress, but locals were ill-equipped to help out.
Kasudluak
said the hole appeared to be shrinking in the freezing temperatures.
Inukpuk believes the sudden drop in temperature recently caught the
orcas off guard, leaving them boxed in under the ice.
