Whale carcass closes Windward beaches

By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Staff Writer

Beaches from Bellows Air Force Station to Waimanalo Beach Park were closed yesterday as about a dozen sharks fed off the carcass of a dead humpback whale that had washed ashore on the military base.

A whale carcass washed up on the beach at Bellows Air Force Base in Waimanalo yesterday morning. The beach was closed to swimmers after sharks were seen in the area. Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser

"Because the carcass has been attacked by sharks over the past couple of days, its blood and its smell is in the water," Allen said. "So we would like people to be aware that there may be sharks in the water."

The whale carcass was spotted about 10:30 a.m. by fishermen, Allen said. Sharks 6- to 12-feet long surrounded the whale, and bite marks could be seen on the decomposing, white body.

Dozens of people watched from a distance, mostly to avoid the overpowering stench.

Despite the lifeguards' warnings, people at Waimanalo Beach Park were swimming, understanding that they were taking a chance.

Evelyn Burton and her son Michael went for a swim but stayed close to shore. Burton said her family had planned to spend the day at Bellows but was turned away and later she learned it was because of the dead whale.

Burton said she couldn't resist the ocean, but she said she was cautious. "But it was scary when a body surfer bumped into me," she said.

Kris Tine said parents of a local basketball team lined the beach as their children swam. The group began arriving at the beach at 10 a.m. and came out when instructed to, but by 2 p.m. they had decided to take a chance and let the children in the water even though a shark had been spotted earlier.

The city provided a front-end loader and several dump trucks to remove the whale. The work was completed about 9 p.m. last night.

Reach Eloise Aguiar at 234-5266 or eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com