Canadian town in fear of rotting blue whale carcass exploding

A 60-ton carcass of a blue whale, which is rotting on the shore on Canada's east coast, is not only stinking up the town but is also triggering fear among the residents that it might burst.

Officials have said that they are currently working with federal agencies to help small towns on Newfoundland's west coast in order to deal with the rotting carcass of the whale that has been washed ashore near the town of Trout River, the New York Post reported.

The 26-meter blue whale is beached next to a community boardwalk and is emitting a powerful stench that is spreading through the town of 600 people and the residents fear that the gas build up inside the animal could cause it to burst.

However, Jack Lawson, a research scientist with Canada's Fisheries Department has said that the risk of the whale blowing up is "very small" and that large, beached whales can either be buried with heavy equipment or cut up and shipped to a landfill.