The animals are part of a pod of 157 whales that beached near Arthur River, a township in Tasmania. What caused them to beach remains unclear.

Australian wildlife officers have made the difficult decision to euthanize 90 false killer whales stranded on a remote beach in Tasmania, after rough ocean conditions made it impossible to refloat them.

In a struggle for survival, the heartbreaking sounds of the mammals’ labored breathing and faint high-pitched cries for help echo in a distressing video filmed Tuesday.