Swimmers and wildlife crews came together to save a pod of disoriented pilot whales that beached on a coastal Georgia island on Tuesday. Local authorities who shared videos of the incident said that the rescuers tried their level best to save the marine animals. Dixie McCoy, who witnessed told CNN that at least 20 whales came near the shore of St. Simons Island's East Beach. He also posted live footage of the incident on Facebook. Dead Humpback Whale Found in Amazon Jungle! Scientists Are Figuring How it Got There.

Several whales had come 50 feet of shore with some of them trying to beach themselves repeatedly. Dixie McCoy was quoted as saying, "As we arrived at the beach, we noticed a group of people in the water. At first, we thought they had dolphins doing some sort of show. As we got closer, we couldn't believe what we saw. It was so sad to see so many whales on the beach. Everyone was trying so hard to get them back in the water." Ever Heard a Whale Sing? Scientists Record 'Song' of Rare North Pacific Right Whale.

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With most of the whales made it back to the waters, some couldn't. Rescuers did everything in their capacity, but three whales died on the beach in Georgia. Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) wildlife biologist Clay George was quoted as saying, "That's a spooky situation because most of those animals are probably healthy and just followed others to the shore. Most of them luckily remained in shallow water. If they had beached themselves, they probably would have all ended up dead." Viral Video of Killer Whale Swimming With a Pod of Dolphins Alongside Fishermen’s Boat off Cape Cod Will Mesmerize You.

According to the DNR, it is not known why the animals beached on the island, although pilot whales "are among the most likely species of whale to beach". DNR said, "They are highly social animals and will frequently follow leaders and attempt to congregate around sick or injured individuals." The DNR thanked the volunteers and first responders for helping most of the whales go back to the water. According to the American Cetacean Society, pilot whales are members of the dolphin family smaller than a killer whale.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 18, 2019 07:51 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).