The skeleton of the orca that washed up on the beach last year will be given a place in the Duinpanne visitor center in De Panne. — © BELGA
De Panne/Koksijde –
The skeleton of the orca, which washed up on the beach last year, will be placed in the Duinpanne visitor center in De Panne and not at Navigo in Koksijde. State Secretary for Science Policy Dermine decided this.
De Panne and Koksijde each believed they had a right to the skeleton of the washed-up orca Reveil. That is why the two coastal municipalities officially put themselves forward to exhibit the orca.
Permanent exhibition
State Secretary for Science Policy Thomas Dermine (PS) had to look into the issue that affected the two neighboring seaside resorts. “There is a permanent exhibition in our Duinpanne visitor center about the impact of climate change on our seas,” Mayor Bram Degrieck (Het Plan-B) said recently. “The fact that Reveil washes up here is exactly what the exhibition is about: an orca like that shouldn’t be here. And that is precisely why the skeleton belongs in Duinpanne in De Panne.”
Extra cost
There is a definitive answer. The orca will end up in the provincial center of Duinpanne in De Panne under certain conditions. The skeleton must therefore always be accessible for scientific research. The center will also have to cover the costs for the preparation and assembly of the skeleton. The preference for the location was the municipality where the animal washed up: De Panne and not Koksijde. De Panne had to incur additional costs due to the stranding and the municipality also offered a lot of help to the researchers on the site.
It is not yet clear when the skeleton will be delivered.