By Kathryn Bender, Star-Bulletin
The whale carcass that floated into Honolulu Harbor Sunday and
was later towed out to sea, came back ashore yesterday off
Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki.

James Shingle looked out of his ocean-front apartment on Kalakaua Avenue yesterday and noticed it right in front as plain as, well, a whale.

The whale was first spotted floating near Honolulu Harbor on Sunday. Towed 10 miles out to sea by a 41-foot U.S. Coast Guard boat on Monday, the 30-foot-long humpback found its way back to shore with the help of wind and a changing tide.

Yesterday, the waves slapped around the whale's skinless and blubbery body, which emanated a powerful stench. Residents and officials struggling to remove the carcass had to cover their noses.

"It's really bad," said Laurie Washam, 32, who learned around midday yesterday about the beast beached by her home.

"I thought it was from a storm. The smell's been around in the air for 24 hours. Even with the windows closed, you could still smell it."

Biologists from the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Department of Land and Natural Resources wrestled with the whale, cutting it into smaller, more manageable pieces using picks and other tools. Crews helped cart parts of the huge body in trash bags to a truck to transport it to a local landfill.

"We did not expect to see it again," said Eugene Nitta, the fisheries Pacific Island Protected Species Program manager. "The wind shifted. It's not our favorite way to dispose of whales."

Skull fragments of the endangered mammal were strewn in a small sandy area abutting apartments. Chunks of the whale's body reportedly were found floating as far west as Kapahulu Avenue, officials said.

Efforts to get rid of the carcass were hampered by bad weather and lack of manpower and space to maneuver large equipment yesterday. After hacking at the animal for several hours until past midday, officials used a rope to tie it to a palm jutting out toward the sea.

"We're doing the best we can with what we have right now," Nitta said. "If we had heavy equipment, we'd be done by now."

The carcass does not pose a health hazard, officials said.

Officials continued whale removal efforts today.

The beached mammoth drew curious onlookers.

"I've never seen anything like this," said Grant Arnold, a UH-Manoa graduate student. "It's a lot bigger than a dead cow."

Said longtime resident Cecilia Smith: "It's nice to have our very own whale."

For Scott Sallee, 10, who's being home-schooled by his father this year, the whale was a firsthand biology lesson.

"This is an education just being here," said his mother, Betty Ann, 50, a flight attendant.

Sallee, armed with a 35mm Nikon, and not too bothered by the odor, offered his view: "It's pretty cool."