There has been another incident involving orca attacking sailboats, this time off the coast of Sines, Portugal. Five people on board managed to depart their badly damaged vessel which started to sink, they escaped by dinghy having radioed ahead for help. Fishing boat Festas André was close by and went straight to the rescue, all crew members are safe. This, what seems to be quite aggressive behaviour towards small sailing boats, has been happening since 2020 around Spain and Portugal – 52 reported orca incidents between June 2020 and March 2021. There have also been incidents around Gibraltar. No one has any idea what is causing the marine mammals to behave in this manner, however, the long-term consequences and escalation are of concern for both the orcas and vessel operators.
What flag the sunken sailboat was flying under; how the interaction began; or why it ended with such drastic consequences is not clear yet. In the past, sailing boats have been immobilised, but not damaged to the point of actually sinking. Rita Mexia who was a passenger on one sailing boat targeted in September 2021 off the Algarve said at the time that as soon as the orcas saw the boat, they headed over and repeatedly attacked the hull and rudder for several minutes, fortunately, that vessel was left intact as seen in the photo.
