A BREACHING whale crashed into a boat on Tuesday in Portsmouth Harbor, capsizing the vessel while catapulting multiple people into the water.
A video taken by a pair of brothers on a nearby ship captured the terrifying ordeal, showing the exact moment a whale submerged a fishing boat near the New Hampshire coast.
Brothers Colin and Wyatt Yager, both Maine natives, said they were fishing about a half-mile off the coast of Rye, New Hampshire – about 10 miles southwest of Portsmouth Harbor – when the whale first appeared.
Portsmouth Harbor is located about 50 miles northeast of Boston, Massachusetts.
Colin quickly took out his phone to film the whale, eager to get the sighting on camera.
“I had my fishing rod right here, phone in my hand, and just saw it go up, and was just lucky enough to be facing the right direction,” Colin said, as reported by ABC affiliate WMUR.
Colin’s brother Wyat was shocked at what happened next.
“I saw it come up, and I was just like, ‘Oh no, it’s going to hit the boat!’ and then it started to flip,” Wyatt Yager said.
They watched as the whale emerged from the water, crashing on top of a nearby fishing boat.
The brothers jumped into action to help rescue two individuals on board, who had fallen into the water as their boat capsized.
At least one of the two fishermen was wearing a lifejacket, according to reports.
“When I turned, the whale’s head was already landing on the engine,” said fisherman Greg Paquette.
“So when I saw that, then all of a sudden, I look down, the boat is pitching up, the transom is going down into the water.”
The other fisherman on board, Ryland Kenney, called the experience “surreal.”
“Everything seemed like in slow motion. It was really weird,” he said.
“Everyone was like, ‘Oh, it was eight seconds. How’d you move so fast?’ But it was almost slow motion, like a movie.”
Despite their massive size, humpback whales are not predatory and are typically gentle and peaceful towards humans.
Despite the terrifying ordeal, neither of the fishermen were hurt.
Both fishermen were also “grateful” for the Yager brothers’ help, and consider it a “miracle” they survived.
“[I’m] truly grateful to them,” said Paquette.
“They were making the video, dropped everything, zoomed right over, and plucked us out,” he said.
“It’s kind of a miracle that I’m alive,” Kennedy added.
“I don’t know what was going through my head. Just, kind of, survival.”
Paquette and Kennedy were brought to the Great Bay Marina following the crash.
Despite some damage to their vessel, the US Coast Guard reported that “the 23-foot center console boat” was salvaged.
They also confirmed the whale did not appear to be injured as a result of the incident.
The Blue Ocean Society for Marine Conservation identified the whale in the video as a humpback, generally known as being gentle and peaceful.
However, like any wild animal, humpback whales can become unpredictable – and even deadly – if they feel stressed, threatened, or otherwise agitated.
While they normally avoid humans, the whales are also notoriously curious and often get close to boats and other vessels at sea.
Barstool Sports reposted the video on their TikTok channel, where it quickly amassed over 330,000 likes.
“I’m glad someone caught this on camera because imagine having to explain this to the insurance guy,” one user jokingly commented.
“Reason number 172893948274 why I don’t fw the ocean,” another user wrote.
“NEW FEAR UNLOCKED,” another user commented.
“We’re gonna need a bigger boat,” another user shared, quoting the famous line from the 1975 film Jaws.
Sara Morris, an employee of the University of New Hampshire Shoals Marine Laboratory, said the whale was “likely lunge feeding” when it crashed into the boat.
Lunge feeding is a strategy that involves a whale accelerating through a school of prey with its mouth closed, before opening its mouth and engulfing a large amount of water – and prey – as it slows down.
“I think one of the key things is that when whales are sighted to encourage boaters to keep their distance,” Morris said.
“The whales are moving around underwater and coming up, potentially in an area different from where they went down, and we want to give them as much leeway as we possibly can to avoid a situation like what you see here.”
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries New England/Mid-Atlantic shared their tips for avoiding similar incidents on their social media page.
“Recently, humpback whales have been seen feeding close to shore from Maine to Massachusetts,” they posted on Facebook.
“In areas where baitfish are thick, humpback whales will gladly take advantage of the easy meal and may have little regard for what is on the surface, including boats.”
NOAA also confirmed that when feeding, humpback whales can become more active at the water’s surface, and their behavior is increasingly “unpredictable.”
“Boaters are advised to steer clear of areas where whales are actively feeding to avoid entangling or colliding with a massive 80,000-pound whale as it rapidly surfaces,” NOAA added.
NOAA also advised boaters to look out for “bubble clouds,” which occur when humpback whales “corral their prey.”
Not only can collisions wreck or destroy small boating vessels, but they can also cause significant injuries to boaters and whales.
“In areas where you suspect whales will be present, slowing to 10 knots helps to prevent collisions by allowing both you and the whale time to react,” NOAA advised.
