A California commercial fisherman is explaining why a colleague jumped onto a humpback whale to free it from a rope and buoy. Nicholas Taron says it was important to save the whale near Morro Bay in September because it was obviously in trouble.
Taron believes the whale slowed down to let the ship help it out after hearing a message over the boat’s loudspeaker. A spokesperson for NOAA says people should call the Coast Guard noting there’s typically more time to save marine animals than people realize. Taron says he called the Coast Guard but was told they couldn’t do anything.