Officials say an 18-foot minke that was stranded in shallow water in Stage Harbor in Chatham died overnight.
The Chatham Harbormaster’s Office tells WXTK news the whale died after beaching itself in Oyster Pond River.
Officials from IFAW, the International Fund for Animal Welfare, are on scene now formulating a plan to remove the whale and perform a necropsy.
Authorities say the whale likely swam under a dock and into the harbor overnight Wednesday.
The whale has scrapes on its body and dorsal fin, which officials say came from swimming under docks and piers in the harbor.