How the Whale Entanglement Team Released a Grey Whale from Crab Gear that Held it Captive for Several Days. Marine Mammal Center volunteer Kathi Koontz tells George Clyde that two sets of crab gear and a rope through its mouth held the whale until freed from the entanglement with a single cut. Links to Marine Mammal Center description and photos and to the Whale Entanglement Team website.