© Desi Smith, Daily Times CNHI News Service
A dead whale, estimated to be about 54 feet long, lied sprawled across the beachfront after washing ashore over the weekend.
It will stay there until nature takes its course, officials are saying.
Rockport's Department of Public Works, in conjunction with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, was tasked with disposing of the carcass, after the whale - estimated to have been dead for two to three weeks - rolled onto the rocky, jagged beachfront.
In the past, Rockport officials have buried smaller whales, but this time large equipment would be unable to reach this beach.
DPW Director Joe Parisi said officials have little choice but to let the carcass deteriorate and wash out to sea bit by bit.
Comment: See below for a chart of wildfires over the past year, note the unseasonal peak in January ( the vast majority of all reports are from the Northern hemisphere).