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Beluga whale in France's Seine river dies during rescue attempt

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Beluga whale in France's Seine river dies during rescue attempt
Rescuers pull up a net after they rescued a beluga whale stranded in the River Seine to bring it into a truck to drive it towards Calvados, France. (Photo by JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER / AFP)

The beluga whale trapped in France's Seine river has died, officials announced on Wednesday after a difficult attempt to rescue it.

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The beluga that made its way into France's Seine river reportedly died during the rescue operation that began on Tuesday evening.

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The whale was extracted from a lock on the Seine river on Tuesday night, but later died

"Despite an unprecedented rescue operation of the beluga, we are sad to announce the death of the cetacean," said the prefecture of Calvados on its Twitter account Wednesday morning.

According to French daily Le Parisien, the whale was euthanised.

The rescue operation was reportedly complex, taking about six hours to get the 800 kg whale out of the water and involving at least 24 divers.

Once veterinarians were able to perform a health checkup, they were able to confirm that the animal was in poor health, and was no longer feeding.

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