A beluga whale stranded in the River Seine in northern France was lifted out of the water early on Wednesday in the first stage of an ambitious rescue operation.

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The whale has been euthanised after it developed breathing difficulties while being transferred by road to the coast, the local French authority has said. 'Despite an unprecedented rescue operation for the beluga, we are sad to announce the death of the cetacean,' the prefect of the Calvados department, said on Twitter.

Rescuers had hoped to transport the beluga, a protected species usually found in cold Arctic waters, to the coast in a refrigerated truck to then be released into the sea

Stranded beluga whale removed from Seine river in France as part of rescue attempt ► https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/aug/10/stranded-beluga-whale-river-seine-paris-france-rescue-attempt

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