A dead whale washed ashore near Shorebird Loop on North Litchfield Beach in Georgetown County on Thursday evening, and officials are telling beachgoers and pet owners to steer clear while crews work to examine and remove it. The carcass showed signs of shark bites and decomposition, and its size and species have not been confirmed by any government agency.
What We Know So Far
The whale came ashore Thursday evening, October 29, according to counton2.com, which cited Jackie Broach, the Georgetown County Public Information Officer, as the source confirming the location and timing. One report from postandcourier.com identified the animal as a humpback whale measuring roughly 31 to 32 feet, though that identification has not been independently verified by NOAA or another government agency. The same report noted that shark bites and decomposition had already taken a toll on the carcass by the time it was spotted.
As of Friday morning, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration was en route to examine the animal before removal, according to WCIV. Separately, the Lowcountry Marine Mammal Network was reported as responding to the incident, per the same counton2.com account, and Post and Courier reported that network officials planned to arrive early Friday for a fuller examination. The cause of death has not been determined, and it remains unclear how or when the whale will ultimately be removed from the beach.
Why Officials Are Urging Caution
Officials are asking the public to stay away from the area and keep pets away while the response plays out, the station reported. Dead whales can carry diseases, and federal law prohibits touching or removing any part of the animal, officials said, per counton2.com. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, all marine mammal species found in U.S. waters are protected, according to NOAA Fisheries, and the law defines prohibited take to include hunting, harassing, killing, capturing, injuring, and disturbing a marine mammal, according to the Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary.
Part of a Broader Pattern Along the Coast
This stranding fits into a longer-running pattern officials have tracked along the Atlantic coast. Since 2016, officials have recorded an elevated number of dead humpback whales along the East Coast, part of what postandcourier.com described as a federally recognized Unusual Mortality Event. As of July 2025, 45 percent of the dead whales examined under that investigation showed signs of human interaction, such as boat strikes or entanglements, the outlet reported.
Closer to home, the Lowcountry Marine Mammal Network documented 13 cetacean strandings in South Carolina between March and June of this year, made up of seven adults, one fetus, and five neonatal or young animals. The network has noted that spring historically produces the highest number of strandings compared with other seasons in the state.
North Litchfield Beach is not the first South Carolina shoreline to see a large whale wash up in recent years. In March 2025, a juvenile, 29-foot male humpback stranded near the North Carolina-South Carolina border, and the Lowcountry Marine Mammal Network worked alongside the University of North Carolina Wilmington Marine Mammal Stranding Program to collect samples, according to myrtlebeachonline.com. That whale showed signs of trauma, but the cause of death was never determined, and crews ultimately buried it on the beach because the water was too shallow to return the carcass to sea.
