WTF? (also known as Holy whale blubber, Batman!)

Col. Crackpot · Post by **Col. Crackpot** » 2004-01-28 08:24am

50 ton dead whale explodes on a city street in taiwan

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2004-01-28 08:30am

I get nothing

Col. Crackpot · Post by **Col. Crackpot** » 2004-01-28 08:36am

its a sloooooooowwww load. be patient.

salm · Post by **salm** » 2004-01-28 08:46am

haha, i want to see pictures of that.

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2004-01-28 08:49am

It was not a connection problem,the first two times i looked it said there was nothing,now that i`ve seen it why they didn`t think of poking a hole in it first.

Xenophobe3691 · Post by **Xenophobe3691** » 2004-01-28 11:56am

The news also showed one section of the street along with several parked automobiles and pedestrian walkways covered in red with copious amounts of splattered whale blood.

I wonder if insurance will cover the cost of repainting a car covered in rotting sperm whale blood...

The Aliens · Post by **The Aliens** » 2004-01-28 12:03pm

Didn't they once blow up a beached whale with way more TNT than was needed, and have massive bits of it falling like rain for hundreds of metres? Saw an old quick time video of that, I'm sure...

General Zod · Post by **General Zod** » 2004-01-28 12:09pm

not getting the article for some reason. (and i'm on broadband presently). can someone do a copy/paste?

aphexmonster · Post by **aphexmonster** » 2004-01-28 12:50pm

hehehe, i just love it when things go kablewey

baelfire1945 · Post by **baelfire1945** » 2004-01-28 12:59pm

That's just yucky.

Mayabird · Post by **Mayabird** » 2004-01-28 03:23pm

The Aliens wrote:Didn't they once blow up a beached whale with way more TNT than was needed, and have massive bits of it falling like rain for hundreds of metres? Saw an old quick time video of that, I'm sure...

Weird coincidence. I was just talking about that with one of my friends. He was going to try to find the video for me if he could.

If I get a link, I'll post it so everyone can be disgusted by it.

Wild Karrde · Post by **Wild Karrde** » 2004-01-28 03:38pm

Mayabird wrote:
The Aliens wrote:Didn't they once blow up a beached whale with way more TNT than was needed, and have massive bits of it falling like rain for hundreds of metres? Saw an old quick time video of that, I'm sure...
Weird coincidence. I was just talking about that with one of my friends. He was going to try to find the video for me if he could.

If I get a link, I'll post it so everyone can be disgusted by it.

I have the vid if anyone wants to host it.

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2004-01-28 03:42pm

If its bellow 5 megs send it to my yahoo group.

Admiral Valdemar · Post by **Admiral Valdemar** » 2004-01-28 03:44pm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3437455.stm

WAR ON TERROR TARGETS WHALES!

Faram · Post by **Faram** » 2004-01-28 03:44pm

Da old exploding vale video:

My google is strong!

salm · Post by **salm** » 2004-01-28 04:11pm

Faram wrote:Da old exploding vale video:

My google is strong!

damn, the download rate is pretty much nonexistent, at least on my comp.

Wild Karrde · Post by **Wild Karrde** » 2004-01-28 04:19pm

Whale ahoy!

General Zod · Post by **General Zod** » 2004-01-28 04:31pm

that's odd. the link that faram posted says the exploding whale thing is a few years old. but the bbc article is '04.

Admiral Valdemar · Post by **Admiral Valdemar** » 2004-01-28 04:32pm

Darth_Zod wrote:that's odd. the link that faram posted says the exploding whale thing is a few years old. but the bbc article is '04.

Two SEPARATE articles.

The Oregon whale was blown up by half a ton of TNT as it was a health hazard. The Thai whale blew up due to decomposition.

General Zod · Post by **General Zod** » 2004-01-28 04:33pm

ahh. the other one wouldn't load up on my computer very well, so all i really got was the date it was published.

SyntaxVorlon · Post by **SyntaxVorlon** » 2004-01-28 05:13pm

Xenophobe3691 wrote:
The news also showed one section of the street along with several parked automobiles and pedestrian walkways covered in red with copious amounts of splattered whale blood.
I wonder if insurance will cover the cost of repainting a car covered in rotting sperm whale blood...

It wouldn't if it was just rotting sperm, which would probably cost more.

IndustrialNoise · Post by **IndustrialNoise** » 2004-01-28 05:24pm

I've heard of that before, that's just disgusting...but at the same time, cool as hell.

Rogue 9 · Post by **Rogue 9** » 2004-01-28 05:30pm

I especially like Dave Barry's article on the Oregon whale.

Grand Moff Yenchin · Post by **Grand Moff Yenchin** » 2004-01-29 10:40am

Damn I missed this post...too busy recently

For those who couldn't read the story, here it is, enjoy:

2004-01-27 / Taiwan News, Contributing Writer / By Jason Pan
A dead sperm whale being transported through Tainan City on its way to a research station suddenly exploded yesterday, splattering cars and shops with blood and guts.

Certified by authorities as the largest beached whale on record in Taiwan, the 17-meter 50-ton carcass was being transported by a flat-bed trailer-truck to a special research location after National Cheng Kung University officials and security guards refused to allow the whale on campus.

The whale was to be preserved and an autopsy performed at the "Shi-Tsao Natural Preserve" in Tainan County by a team of marine biologists and taxidermists.

National Cheng Kung University marine biologist, professor Wang Chien-ping, was on the scene and said he had he instructed the truck driver to move the carcass so the whale could be used for educational purposes and an autopsy could be done.

The beached whale was found on along a stretch of coast in Yunlin County on Saturday.

"The animal was close to death when someone found it beached on shore on Saturday... Because of the natural decomposing process, a lot of gases accumulated, and when the pressure buildup was too great, the whale's belly just exploded and spilled blood and the innards on the street," Wang said.

Despite the explosion, enough of the whale remained intact that it will still be transported to the 'Shi-Tsao Natural Preserve' for a scientific examination, Wang added.

Local news reports showed a number of people who had gathered to take photographs of the whale before it exploded in Tainan City, as well as residents and shop owners following the explosion. Many were wearing gauze-masks and trying to clean up the spilled blood and the entrails with brushes and brooms.

"What a stinking mess! This blood and other stuff that blew out on the road is disgusting, and the smell is really awful," said one resident.

The news also showed one section of the street along with several parked automobiles and pedestrian walkways covered in red with copious amounts of splattered whale blood.

Lying on the trailer-truck was the dead whale - underbelly exposed with a large elongated tear where the biological gaseous blowout took place. Besides the shocking red bloody mess, large piles of whale intestines and guts were strewn along the road, leaving an unpleasant and ghastly scene for startled residents.

According to Wang, an initial assessment suggested the animal looked like an older bull whale. He said the carcass weighed over 50 metric tons and measured 17 meters, making it the largest whale ever recorded in Taiwan. He told the press that previous record was an 11-meter sperm whale which was found beached along a Tainan County coast 8 years ago.

Local media reported the sperm whale was still alive when it was found lying on the seashore in Yunlin County by a fisherman on Saturday morning. The man informed the coast guard and the police for help. When the authorities and conservation groups arrived to attempt a rescue during the afternoon, they found the animal had died.

After the news had spread about the giant beached whale, a mini-circus festival atmosphere prevailed on the site. Throughout the day on Sunday, a large crowd of more than 600 local Yunlin residents and curiosity seekers, along with vendors selling snack food and hot drinks, braved the cold temperature and chilly wind to watch workmen try to haul away the dead marine leviathan.

According to local news reports, the animal's record size proved a tough challenge for the work crews, and it took more than 13 hours, 3 large lifting cranes, and 50 workers to get the beached sperm whale loaded onto the flat-bed trailer-truck to be taken on its final trek.

Further news: The Tainan City Bureau of Environmental Protection is considering to fine the Agricultural Committe 6000$ NT (about 300$ US) for "improper waste handling".

Too bad I couldn't find the pics of the cars. The TV news showed a white car.

GRAPHIC BENEATH

Col. Crackpot · Post by **Col. Crackpot** » 2004-01-29 10:47am

in a way i'm glad that the picture doesn't work.