A pod of 90 pilot whales have washed upon New Zealand’s South Island, making this the second incident this month in the same area. 

Attempts to refloat the animals in the dark were dismissed, according to John Mason, the area manager for the Department of Conservation Golden Bay, as it was deemed too dangerous. 

Conservation officials plan to keep the whales cool and away from the sun. They are hoping that the high tide in Farewell Spit, Golden Bay, will help the whales refloat during the night from Monday going over onto Tuesday. However, if the whales stay overnight efforts will be made to help them get back into the water at high tide Tuesday morning, at around 11:20pm. 

Earlier this month, 25 whales met with the same fate, of which 18 refloated. Another group consisting of four Gray’s beaked whales ended up stranded and died last Saturday at the Papamoa Beach. 

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