100 white whales trapped in Russian ice

The lives of around 100 white whales are in danger after they were trapped in ice near Russia's northeast peninsula, officials said on Wednesday.

The lives of around 100 white whales are in danger after they were trapped in ice near Russia's northeast peninsula, officials said on Wednesday.

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Valery Vasilyev, a senior official of the Chukotka peninsula region, said local fishermen and hunters working in the Bering Sea saw the group of whales trapped in the Sinyavinsky channel on Tuesday.

"The hunters said the animals swam into two little ice-holes where they can easily breathe," Vasilyev said.

The whales, however, would not be able to escape, and were in danger since there is no food in the area and the ice is freezing very quickly, he said.