Team frees entangled whale

PROVINCETOWN, Mass. (AP) – A humpback whale was cut free by rescuers after being entangled in fishing gear in Canadian waters for at least three days.

Scott Landry of the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies and David Mattila of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary freed the whale from anchored lobster gear on Sunday.

The whale was spotted Friday by a Canadian fishing vessel, which reported it to the Canadian Coast Guard. Heavy rope had wrapped around its flippers and body on Browns Bank, 70 miles southwest of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.

The rescuers reached the whale on an inflatable boat, despite the weekend’s high seas and foggy weather.