On Nov. 12, 1970, a sperm whale carcass was blown to pieces on the Oregon coast, sending huge chunks of blubber falling not just onto innocent bystanders, but into the history books. It’s hard ...

BONUS: To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Exploding Whale, KATU and the Oregon Historical Society released a digitally remastered 4K version of the original report.

Oregon's Infamous Exploding Whale The Oregon Department of Transportation once tried to remove a troublesome dead whale from the shoreline by blowing it up, with calamitous results.

Oregon is known nationally for its trees and outdoor recreation, but what about the exploding whale? In November 1970, a dead sperm whale washed up on a beach near Florence on the Oregon Coast.

It wasn’t that long ago that an Exploding Whale Day seemed like a wild idea, a fever dream born from a viral video pulled out of the depths of Oregon history, but in Florence the event has ...

The exploding whale is a piece of Oregon lore that just won’t go away. It’s one of those real-life stories that just sounds too strange to be real. July 6, 2025.

Tuesday, November 12 denotes a remarkable day in Oregon history: 54 years since a dead whale was infamously blown up on a Florence beach, showering bystanders and cars with whale bits - and ...

Exploding Whale Memorial Park in Oregon commemorates a gory 1970 attempt to remove a whale carcass and is now open to the public.

Man Behind Oregon's Famous Exploding Whale Dies : The Two-Way Highway engineer George Thornton, who led a 1970 operation to blow up the dead whale on a beach, died this week at age 84. Thornton's ...

Whales that wash ashore on Oregon beaches are now buried, but the 1970 event has become a feature of the state's history. In June, it was commemorated with the opening of the Exploding Whale ...

The Exploding Whale Incident – Oregon’s Most Bizarre Disaster. Posted: May 29, 2025 ... In an attempt to solve a “whale-sized” problem, Oregon officials blew up a beached whale with dynamite.