“June,” the entangled whale that eluded its would-be rescuers near San Onofre State Beach last week, was sighted off the coast of Monterey County in Gorda, Calif., about 375 nautical miles away.
Laguna Beach’s Pacific Marine Mammal Center received notification Tuesday on the whereabouts of the 40-foot gray nicknamed “June” by the National Marine Fisheries Service.
While rescue crews from Laguna were the first responders, renewed efforts to disentangle the whale will fall to a sister organization approved by National Marine Fisheries, spokeswoman Melissa Sciacca said. “June” disappeared overnight after local rescuers temporarily ceased trying to cut away fishing debris on the whale’s fin and mouth at nightfall.
