Beach Safety: 12-foot whale beaches itself at Ponce Inlet

Beach goers discovered a 12-foot sperm whale had beached itself in Ponce Inlet around 1:00pm Saturday, according to Captain Tamra Marris with Volusia County Beach Safety.

"It was important for us to work to keep people away from the mammal just because it can be extremely dangerous if they start thrashing around," says Marris.

The county's Marine Mammal Stranding Team and Hubbs Seaworld were called in to assist.

The sperm whale died after a 2-hour long effort to save the mammal.

"People don't understand that they beach themselves because something is wrong and you don't just push them back into the water," Captain Marris said.

The whale was transported off the beach to undergo a necropsy.