The Associated Press
EVERETT — A gray whale that was stranded off the shores of Everett and managed to get back to open waters has beached itself again.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration spokesman Brian Gorman says it’s not surprising the 40-foot whale beached itself again. He says that whales that are sick seek the shores.
Gorman says the whale’s prospects are bleak. But he said it was surprising the whale has survived being beached twice, given its massive weight.
On Thursday, more than a dozen volunteers kept the whale wet with buckets of water and protected its sensitive skin with wet towels for hours until the tide rose and the whale was able to swim out to open water.
Residents near Harborview Park in Everett spotted the whale today about a quarter-mile west from where it was stranded Thursday.
Everett is about 30 miles north of Seattle.