The young humpback whale stranded

on a Gold Coast beach since Tuesday night is now free.

A Palm Beach resident alerted police to the juvenile whale’s presence on the beach about 7pm on Tuesday night, and Seaworld staff and the RSPCA attended the scene.

The 15-to-20-tonne whale was stranded in only 30 centimetres of water.

More than 20 people were in the water yesterday morning trying to get the distressed eight-metre whale, thought to be two to five years old, back out to sea.

A tent was then erected over the baby whale to keep it out of the sun during the day, and rescuers waited until high tide yesterday afternoo

n to resume their rescue efforts.

Some surrounding san

d was dug out around it with five excavators, and the whale event

ually swam out to sea as a large crowd cheered.

But just as the whale started to move off yesterday afternoon, to the applause of 250 people gathered at the scene, it hit a sandbar, the Gold Coast Bulletin reports.

At one stage it was buffeted by waves and rolled on its side, blocking its blowhole.

Sea World prepared a harness and attempted to tow the whale further out.

The whale was finally freed at about 8:15 this morning, and is now back in deep water.

via @9news

via @9news

via @lizburke

via @9news

via @sunrise