The BDMLR said the injured and drained calf would struggle to swim even if it managed to get back into deeper water.
Crews had already worked for hours before being able to free the whale early Monday from a perilous stranding on a lock near Richmond, a few miles downstream of Teddington.
But as the mammal was being taken for further health checks on an inflatable pontoon, it slipped back into the water.
“This animal is very, very lost,” Port of London Authority spokesman Martin Garside said. “It’s like seeing a camel at the North Pole.”
Garside said a whale had never been seen this far up the Thames before, 95 miles (150 kilometers) along the river from its mouth, with the sheer distance making the whale s route back to safety extremely difficult.
Minke whale stuck far from home in London s Thames River likely to be euthanized dailypress.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from dailypress.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Small whale stranded in River Thames freed after desperate battle to save it
The whale got into difficulty near Richmond Lock and Weir on Sunday, May 9, and although it has now been freed, experts remain hugely concerned about its wellbeing
09:49, 10 MAY 2021
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Whale in River Thames rescued as hundreds gather to watch operation to free stranded animal
The whale, believed to be a Minke, was finally freed at about 1am
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A small whale has been freed after it became stuck along the River Thames on Sunday evening (May 9).
A small whale has been freed after it became stranded along the River Thames in south-west London on Sunday evening. Hundreds gathered at Richmond Lock and Weir after the whale, believed to be a Minke and between three to four metres long, became stuck on the lock’s boat rollers. Videos showed it being hosed down by a man believed to be a Port of London Authority (PLA) staffer, while a vet performed a check-up at the river’s edge, before the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) arrived at the scene to the cheers of onlookers around 9pm. Fire crews were also at the scene, along with the British Divers Marine Life Rescue service.