Humpback whale 'Timmy' released in the North Sea after weeks stranded off Germany

A rescue team has released from a barge in the North Sea a humpback whale that had been stranded in shallow waters near Germany since March, witnesses said

BERLIN -- A rescue team on Saturday released from a barge in the North Sea a humpback whale that had been stranded in shallow waters near Germany since March, witnesses said.

Nicknamed Timmy by German media, the whale was spotted swimming near Germany’s Baltic Sea coast on March 3, far from its natural habitat in the Atlantic Ocean.

The mammal’s health deteriorated as it became repeatedly stranded in shallow waters, and unsuccessful efforts to coax it toward deeper seas were live-streamed across the globe.

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The environment minister for Germany’s Mecklenburg Vorpommern gave the green light for the attempt to save the whale, proposed by a private initiative, despite some warnings from the scientific community that it may be too much for the animal.

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