Orcas Sink Yacht off Portugal — Family of Five Survives Dramatic Incident
A French family of five, including three small children, miraculously survived after their yacht was sunk by a pod of orcas off the coast of Portugal.
The incident occurred on Friday, when Portuguese military authorities received a distress call from the French sailing yacht Ti’fare, which was about 50 nautical miles off the coast of Peniche. According to the report, the yacht was rammed by orcas, causing severe hull damage and rapid flooding.
The family managed to launch their life raft and abandon the sinking vessel. They were soon rescued by the fishing boat Silmar. The Portuguese Air Force dispatched a Merlin helicopter from Montijo to airlift the survivors back to land around 11:00 p.m. that evening. Fortunately, all five were safe and uninjured.
Growing Pattern of Orca Attacks in Iberian Waters
This marks the second yacht this month to be sunk by orcas off the Iberian coast. Earlier, near the Bay of Fonte da Telha, a pod of orcas struck the rudder of a sailing yacht, causing it to capsize and sink. The crew managed to evacuate safely.
On the same day, the same group of orcas reportedly chased another yacht, forcing rescuers to evacuate the crew as a precaution.
Marine experts note that such incidents have been occurring for several years. A small, well-identified group of orcas living near the Iberian Peninsula has developed a peculiar habit of ramming yacht rudders. Scientists believe this is a form of playful behavior — possibly triggered by the motion of the rudder.
Researchers: Humans Are Not the Target
Orca researcher Lamia Essemlali says that sinking yachts is not the animals’ intention. She explains that hundreds of yachts have been attacked with varying degrees of damage, but most did not sink.
“If orcas really wanted to sink boats, we wouldn’t be talking about four or five — we’d be talking about six hundred,” she said.
There has never been a recorded fatal orca attack on humans in the wild, and in some historical cases, orcas even cooperated with humans in hunting.
Nevertheless, attacks continue to increase. Over the past weekend, Spanish maritime rescue services had to tow two yachts to safety after similar encounters with orcas near Cabo Vilano.
