Killer whales wreck boat in latest 'scary' attack off Spanish coast

A sailing boat off the coast of southern Spain on Thursday (May 25) was severely destroyed by killer whales, news agency Reuters reported citing the local maritime rescue agency. This issue has become serious as scores of orca assaults on vessels have been recorded this year on the Spanish and Portuguese coasts.

The pod punctured the hull of the Mustique and also shattered the rudder on its route to Gibraltar. The spokeswoman for the maritime rescue agency said that the damage forced the ship's four-man crew to seek assistance from Spanish authorities.

Endangered orcas are actually members of the dolphin family, but they are knownas killer whales. As adults, they can grow to be up to eight metres long and weigh up to six tonnes.

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The spokesperson said that the agency sent a rapid-response vessel and a helicopter carrying a bilge pump to assist the 20-metre vessel, which was travelling under the British flag. It also added that the Mustique was transported to Barbate port in Cadiz province for repairs.

April Boyes, a British sailor, was aboard the Mustique and posted photos and footage of the orcas' destruction to her Instagram account.

She can be heard saying in the videos that "it's like they are biting it apart". "What started off as a seemingly unique encounter ended with orcas breaking off our rudder from the boat, then proceeding to tear bits off the boat for an hour," she later said.

"A huge hole in the hull meant we had water ingress to other parts of the boat and the engine room and I can honestly say it was a scary experience. We are all safe, I'm feeling grateful for the coastguard."

Killer whales attacks

The GTOA, a research organisation, which records populations of the Iberian orca subspecies, stated that this incident comes after at least 20 confrontations between small vessels with the highly gregarious apex predators in the Strait of Gibraltar this month alone. There were 207 documented encounters in 2022.

Earlier in May, the sailing vessel Alboran Champagne was hit by three orcas half a nautical mile off the coast of Barbate. Because the ship was entirely inundated, it could not be dragged and was allowed to sink.

In guidelines, the Spanish Transport Ministry stated that whenever ships witness any change in the conduct of orcas, such as unexpected changes in direction or speed, they should leave the region as quickly as possible to avoid further disturbance to the animals during the movements.

The government also stated that any interaction between a ship and an orca must be notified to authorities.

(With inputs from agencies)

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