Humpback Whale Entangled in Fishing Gear Freed in Alaska

JUNEAU, Alaska – A team of marine experts freed a humpback whale that had spent four days entangled in fishing gear in Alaska's Chatham Strait.

The last lines were cut away Tuesday evening, said Sheela McLean, a fisheries spokeswoman with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

A second whale was also reported entangled in lines near Haines. Another was reported near southern Admiralty Island, and a fourth whale was spotted Wednesday morning near Angoon.

A dead humpback whale with fishing gear attached to it was found on a beach on southern Admiralty Island last weekend.