14 whale deaths along US East Coast remain a mystery

By Brandon Drenon

BBC News, Washington

The mysterious death of 14 whales along the US East Coast since 1 December has officials, lawmakers and environmental groups debating the cause.

Some are blaming the deaths on the development of an offshore wind farm in the area.

Officials, however, say they have found no evidence to suggest wind farms are to blame.

Since 2016, they have been tracking the "unusual mortality" of humpback whales along the eastern shores.

Over the past six years, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) tallied 178 dead humpback whales from Florida to Maine. NOAA reports for approximately half the whale fatalities found that 40% of the deaths were caused by human interaction, either being caught in fishing gear or struck by boat vessels.

Sperm whales, an endangered species, have also been found dead along the eastern coasts.

The most recent death, that of a humpback whale washed ashore in Maryland on 16 January, prompted a press conference held by NOAA officials and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), amid mounting rumours that wind farm development was to blame. Seven other whales in New Jersey and New York have died in just over a month.