Around 20 volunteers came together to get a group of dolphins back out to sea after being cornered by a pack of orca.
Susan McKay with the Wild Ocean and Whale Society says the dolphins swam into more shallow waters to try and get away from the orca but ended up getting stuck.
“The orca were going back and forth out in front and kept the dolphins right tight to shore and the dolphins were trying to hide, they were in shallower water than the orca could get into and they wound up in this pool that was shallow. As the tide went out, they became stranded in that fish pool.”
Mckay says once the orcas swam away, over 20 volunteers jumped into the water to get the dolphins back out to sea as soon as possible.
“Once the orca disappeared people jumped in the water and started getting them out. Most of the people involved were from the Tla’amin First Nation.”
“They got some tarps and started lifting them and carrying them out, which is a really good thing and the proper method to actually transport these animals and get them back into deeper water,” says McKay.
She says the quick actions by the community were amazing to see.
“Everyone that was there was absolutely thrilled to be able to see these dolphins group up and swim south. The orca had gone north and the dolphin had gone south. It was a great effort by everybody and it was very fast work on everybody’s part to get these animals back into deeper water.”
