Beluga whale 'saves' diver

[Hydro]

A drowning diver has told how she was saved by a whale that pushed her back to the surface when she suffered crippling cramps.

Published: 12:03PM BST 29 Jul 2009
Whale and diver: Beluga whale 'saves' diver
A drowning diver has told how she was saved by a whale that pushed her back to the surface when she suffered crippling cramps Photo: EUROPICS

Yang Yun thought she was going to die when her legs were paralysed by arctic temperatures during a free diving contest without any breathing equipment.

Competitors had to sink to the bottom of an aquarium's 20ft arctic pool and stay there for as long as possible amid the beluga whales at Polar Land in Harbin, north east China.

But when Yun, 26, tried to head to the surface she found her legs were crippled by cramps.

"I began to choke and sank even lower and I thought that was it for me – I was dead. Until I felt this incredible force under me driving me to the surface," she explained.

Mila, the Beluga whale, had spotted her difficulties and using her sensitive dolphin-like nose guided Yun safely to the surface.

"Mila noticed the problem before we did," explained an organiser.

"We suddenly saw the girl being pushed to the top of the pool with her leg in Mila's mouth. She's a sensitive animal who works closely with humans and I think this girl owes her life."

Intelligent Belugas were among the first whales to interact with man and have facial muscles that allow them to smile.

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