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Whale Stranded In South Coast Harbor

An apparently disoriented humpback whale ended up in Ventura Harbor Saturday afternoon

An apparently confused humpback whale is creating a huge commotion at a South Coast harbor, after it became stranded Saturday afternoon.

The more than 30 foot long whale was spotted at around 1 p.m., swimming in a marina area near Spinnaker Drive in Ventura Harbor.

Ventura Harbor, Channel Islands National Park, and U.S. Coast Guard boats tried using loud noises to divert the whale back out to sea, as well as recorded whale sounds, but neither approached worked. They then decided to give the whale some space to find its own way back out to sea.

Word of the photogenic whale swimming around the harbor attracted hundreds of spectators.

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.