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Princess cruise ship strikes whale     July 28

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Producer:   Matt Miller

Photos of the dead whale impaled on the bow of the Sapphire Princess cruise ship. (Courtesy National Marine Fisheries Service).

Federal Fisheries officials are currently investigating a collision between a cruise ship and a whale.

The whale was reported lodged on the bow of the Sapphire Princess as it approached Juneau Wednesday morning. Before it was spotted by the ship's crew and reported to federal authorities, Kirby Day of Princess Cruises in Juneau says they did not notice any collision or whale sightings since the vessel left Ketchikan Tuesday afternoon.

A tug boat with divers pulled the whale off the cruise ship near the south end of Douglas Island before the Sapphire Princess pulled into Juneau at about 4 p.m.

National Marine Fisheries Service Spokeswoman Julie Speegle says agents from NMFS's Office of Law Enforcement and Protected Resources Division will interview the ship's crew. A necropsy will be performed to determine cause of death.

Still unknown is the gender, size, age or species of the whale, or whether it was already sick or dead when it was hit.

Speegle says it could be unsightly for some tourists, as well as a biological hazard bringing such a large carcass into a highly-populated area for a necropsy.

As the investigation is just getting underway, Speegle says it's premature to discuss any possible action or penalties against the crew or cruise line.

This is the second time the Sapphire Princess has struck a whale in the last year. The ship pulled into Vancouver, B.C. last July with a dead fin whale lodged in the bow. But Day says a necropsy showed that particular whale had been dead for several weeks.

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