Gordon’s Bay elephant seal makes a splash at Kalk Bay Harbour

The City of Cape Town has reported that an elephant seal that had spectators in awe in Gordon’s Bay yesterday has made its way to Kalk Bay Harbour today, Wednesday May 28.

Iol reported that the seal initially drew attention on Tuesday morning as it moved through the streets of Gordon’s Bay, nearly a kilometre from the shoreline. Videos and photos shared online showed the seal visibly fatigued, resting against a parked vehicle and continuing along the tarred roads.

By 8am on Tuesday, officials from the Cape of Good Hope SPCA responded to the scene at Sir Lowry’s Pass Road, where the seal had settled in a residential area. The City’s mayoral committee member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Eddie Andrews, said two attending wildlife veterinarians successfully sedated the animal.

"Once given the go-ahead by the vets, the animal was carefully rolled onto a stretcher and with a combination of many hands and a well-coordinated effort the almost 1.2 ton animal was carefully and quickly loaded into the trailer without a hitch," he said.

The animal’s condition was monitored before being transported to the Steenbras Nature Reserve coastal area along Clarens Drive for release. Upon arrival, the seal was found to be awake and alert.

The vets gave the go-ahead to open the trailer, and the seal moved across the beach and into the sea.

This morning, it was confirmed that the elephant seal had reached Kalk Bay Harbour, Mr Andrews said.

He said: "The City would like to thank all the role players who were involved with bringing the seal to safety yesterday. The close collaboration between the City, SPCA and all the parties while dealing with the emergency management of this heavy weight seal ensured a smooth transition into the ocean at Kogel Bay Resort."