FALMOUTH, England, June 9 (UPI) -- Rescuers in England's Cornwall county said at least 21 dolphins that became beached after they were stranded in a river have died.
The rescuers, led by British Divers Marine Life Rescue, said seven dolphins were rescued after they became beached in Porth Creek and two others were transported to deep water in stretchers carried by boats, Sky News reported Monday.
The dolphins were stranded after they swam up the Percuil River to Porth Creek. The first pod of 15 dolphins to become stranded was soon joined by several others that were drawn in by their distress calls, rescuers said.
"It's a horrible scene of carnage with bodies everywhere," lifeboat helmsman Dave Nicoll said after arriving on the scene.
The carcasses were removed from the beach and taken for post-mortem examinations.
Tony Woodley, national spokesman for BDMLR, said the event was was the largest mass stranding of marine life in 27 years. "We haven't seen a stranding anywhere near this scale since 1981 when pilot whales were beached on the east coast," he said.
