Sri Lanka's navy and volunteers rescued 120 pilot whales stranded in the country's biggest mass beaching, but at least two injured animals were found dead. Sailors from the navy and the coast guard along with local volunteers pushed back at least 120 whales by dawn after a grueling overnight rescue.

Local authorities braced for mass deaths as seen in Tasmania in September when about 470 pilot whales were stranded and only about 110 of them could be saved after days of rescue efforts. Sri Lanka's Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) confirmed that the city of Panadura saw the largest single pod of whales stranded in the South Asian country.