- Title: Beached "whale" found in central Paris
- Date: 21st July 2017
- Summary: PARIS, FRANCE (JULY 21, 2017) (REUTERS) VIEW OF SEINE RIVER WITH "DEAD BEACHED WHALE" PERFORMANCE ON THE BANK, BOAT PASSING "BEACHED WHALE" SURROUNDED BY PERFORMERS SPRAYING WATER ON IT WHALE AND NOTRE-DAME CATHEDRAL IN THE DISTANCE TOURISTS ON RIVER BOAT LOOKING TOWARDS WHALE VARIOUS OF PERFORMER PRETENDING TO INSPECT EYE OF WHALE PERFORMER PRETENDING TO BELONG TO FAKE ANIMAL PRESERVATION ORGANISATION "INTERNATIONAL WHALE ASSOCIATION", TOM KENIS, TALKING WITH OTHER PERFORMER (SOUNDBITE) (English) PRETEND ANIMAL PRESERVATION ACTIVIST, TOM KENIS, SAYING: "I'm with the International Whale Association and we've been called in from Antwerp where we're based, to the banks of the Seine where we're stood in front of a male adult sperm whale, deceased. It was found here at about 2h30 at night, just passed midnight, we were called in. Police got in a crane to put on the banks for it not to disturb the traffic obviously on the river. And we believe there to be a female and a baby sperm whale to be further up the river about 4 kilometres still alive, we're trying to push it back into the estuary, back into the English Channel." PEOPLE WATCHING THE SCENE PERFORMER SPRAYING WATER ON WHALE (SOUNDBITE) (French) PARISIAN, ANABELA, SAYING: "It makes me very sad because for an animal like this to leave the Atlantic to end up here means that there is a problem. What's the problem? Is it our fault us humans that animals die like this? I don't know. I think it might be our fault as well." PEOPLE LOOKING AT WHALE, AS PERFORMER SPRAYS WATER (SOUNDBITE) (English) ENGLISH TOURIST, GREG, IN COMPANY OF HIS WIFE ANASTASIA, SAYING: "But it's really sad to see. It seems to be not just here though, it's happening all over, in the last few years at an accelerated rate, which is something that we all need to think about, you know, really question the way we're living and what we're doing to our planet, why we're doing it to the planet." SCIENTIFIC TOOLS NEXT TO WHALE PEOPLE LOOKING AT SCENE, TAKING PHOTOS PERFORMER SPRINKLING WATER ON WHALE (SOUNDBITE) (English) PRETEND ANIMAL PRESERVATION ACTIVIST, TOM KENIS, SAYING: "Now mankind is actually changing the shape of the planet, the form, the content of the waters etcetera. So we have such a profound impact and this really drives it home, like you find a whale in downtown Paris and you go like: 'Hmmm, how does that happen?', and do we have something to do with that so that's definitely a question that has to pop into people's minds." BEACHED WHALE CORDONED OFF WITH TAPE
- Embargoed: 4th August 2017 13:52
- Keywords: whale stunt Seine River environmental awareness Paris tourists
- Location: PARIS, FRANCE
- City: PARIS, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Topics: Environment,Nature/Wildlife,Human Interest / Brights / Odd News
- Reuters ID: LVA0016QNVAZD
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Parisians and tourists were shocked to see a beached whale on the banks of the river Seine in central Paris on Friday (July 21), many not realising it was a stunt.
Anyone could be fooled by the scene - a 17-metre "sperm whale", beached on its side, his eye looking up to the sky, as "forensic scientists" worked around the body, taking samples and spraying it with water.
Tom Kenis, who said he worked for the "International Whale Association" said his team were called in when the whale was found floating in the middle of the Seine during the night.
He said sonar and noises from human activity affect the species' sense of direction and ability to navigate waters.
Passersby were disturbed by what they perceived as a true phenomenon.
"It makes me very sad because for an animal like this to leave the Atlantic to end up here means that there is a problem. What's the problem? Is it our fault us humans that animals die like this? I don't know. I think it might be our fault as well," said Parisian Anastasia, convinced the whale has died in central Paris.
"It's really sad to see. It seems to be not just here though, it's happening all over, in the last few years at an accelerated rate, which is something that we all need to think about, you know, really question the way we're living and what we're doing to our planet, why we're doing it to the planet," said British tourist Greg who seemed worried about how humans are destroying the planet.
A group of Belgian artists called Captain Boomer, who installed the whale and had pulled similar artistic stunts in the past, aims to raise awareness about the environment.
The art installation can be viewed until Sunday (July 23) before the whale ends up "beached" in another European capital. The scientists and Tom Kenis are all performers and the International Whale Association does not exist. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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