It was late January, and the waters off the Hawaiian coast were bathed in the soft, peaceful glow of first light. Underwater photographer John Kowitz and the @seethroughsea team headed offshore, their spirits high as they immediately spotted two majestic humpback whales near the harbor. But as their drone hovered above the gentle giants, the awe instantly turned to dread.

Their "hearts sank".

One of the whales was trapped. It was dragging a massive, lethal tangle of commercial fishing gear, a brutal burden it had likely carried all the way from the frigid crab fisheries of Alaska. The heavy line was deeply embedded just behind its blowhole, twisting painfully through its mouth.

Knowing a life was on the line, the boat's captain—trained in marine disentanglement—immediately radioed the NOAA authorities. For the next two and a half grueling hours, the team became the whale's guardians. Working under permit #24359, they utilized drones, topside DSLR cameras, and underwater Insta360 footage to map the deadly web of lines. They needed to give the NOAA response team a flawless blueprint for the rescue. Once the specialized crew arrived from Maui, Kowitz's team had to depart, hoping against hope for a miracle.

And a miracle is exactly what happened.

For five relentless hours, the skilled rescue teams fought to free the massive animal. They painstakingly cut away 251 feet of line, heavy hooks, and 10 feet of chain. With a final, strategic asymmetrical cut near the mouth, the suffocating drag was finally released. In total, a staggering 320 feet of gear was removed.

The relief was instant. The very moment the agonizing weight fell away, the whale began swimming faster, finally free.

(Courtesy of John Kowitz)

This incredible late-January rescue became one of the most successful disentanglement efforts of the season. Thanks to the stellar, specialized coordination of the Hawaii Whale Entanglement Network and the watchful eyes of dedicated photographers, this beautiful creature will "survive to live a much longer and healthy life".

As the @seethroughsea team triumphantly declared, "Safe to say we saved a humpback whale!"

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