Santiago: Fifteen whales washed up on a beach in the northern Chilean city of Iquique were rescued by some 300 volunteers, police and navy personnel.
However, three of the cetaceans died hours later.
Experts say these whales are a deep-sea species that live 100 miles from the coast and could have come to the ground in pursuit of food.
Normal size of whale can be up to 16 feet and weigh as much as a ton, though the ones washed up on the Chilean beach were average 8-feet-long and weighed some 300 kg.
IANS
First Published: Wednesday, April 28, 2010, 10:22