Family Rescued After Orcas Sink Yacht Off Coast of Portugal

Photo- Vidar Nordli-Mathisen / Unsplash

A French family of five was rescued after a pod of Orcas sank their 36-foot yacht off the coast of Portugal last week.

The incident occurred roughly 55 nautical miles off the coast of Peniche, a coastal city north of Lisbon and some 350 nautical miles north of the Strait of Gibraltar, when the Orcas rammed the hull several times causing it to flood.

A couple and their three children, aged 8, 10, and 12, were forced to abandon ship.

After activating their distress beacon, the family was able to enter a life raft and await rescue. A nearby fishing boat named Silmar responded to the emergency call and took the family aboard before authorities arrived.

A statement from the Portuguese Air Force corroborated the rescue and included dramatic video footage of an Air Force EH-101 Merlin helicopter deploying rescue personnel onto the deck of the Silmar.

According to the statement, the rescue operation began around 8:45 pm local time and the family was safely rescued by 11 pm. All five were airlifted to shore without injury, although it's unknown how long they were in the life raft before rescuers arrived A Navy frigate, the D. Francisco de Almeida, and a lifeboat from the Peniche Port Authority were also deployed as part of the coordinated response. The family was taken to Montijo Air Base, and from there to a local hospital for evaluation.

A spokesperson for the Portuguese Air Force confirmed the sinking, stating: “(t)he sailboat, carrying a couple and three children, was attacked by a group of orcas, who damaged the boat leading it into the water. Following the incident, the five people abandoned the boat using a life raft, being later picked up by a fishing vessel that was nearby."

The incident is yet another in a growing list of interactions between Orcas and sailing yachts in the region, although interactions along the Portuguese coast are much less common. Most incidents occur directly within the Strait of Gibraltar, which separates Spain and Morocco, although reports have come as far north as France, over 800 nautical miles north of the Strait.

The danger to boaters has reached such a level that authorities have warned boaters to consider the Orcas a permanent risk in the Strait. Their behavior has been consistently studied since the phenomenon began, with the leading theory stating a particular pod of whales has learned to interact with the boats as a 'game' for their entertainment, not as a direct show of aggression. In nearly all incidents, the whales 'bump' the rudder or daggerboard, often resulting in the boat becoming inoperable, although in several instances it has caused vessels to sink. Scientists don't believe the interactions are intended to deter boaters, but rather as a learned behavior that older Orcas have passed on to their younger offspring.

According to Portugal’s Maritime Authority, 61 alerts about Orca activity have been issued so far this year — up from 45 in 2024. Experts from the Cruising Association, a team of scientists and researchers tracking the phenomenon, say the encounters have become increasingly common in the Bay of Biscay, indicating a potential northern area of operation for the whales. The Bay of Biscay sits north of Spain and west of France, some 900-1000 nautical miles from the Strait of Gibraltar where the incidents first began in 2020.

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