The United States Coast Guard reports two fishermen are safe after a whale struck and capsized their boat off the coast of New Hampshire.
The incident happened near Odiorne Point State Park in Rye. The two men who were thrown overboard said they had seen the whale before and tried to keep their distance.
“He dived, disappeared for a few minutes, and the next thing we know, he just appeared right above us,” fisherman Ryland Kenney told WMUR-TV.
The Coast Guard posted a statement to social media platform X that they had received a distress call. mayday which stated that the 7-meter long center console boat had capsized after being hit by a whale.
“The occupants were ejected as the vessel capsized,” the Coast Guard wrote, adding that an urgent marine information broadcast had been issued, and the Portsmouth Coast Guard Station was alerted.
“A ‘good Samaritan’ rescued both men from the water. No injuries were reported,” the Coast Guard wrote.
His saviors are two young men who are brothers.
“I saw it come up, and I thought, ‘Oh, it’s going to hit the boat,’” Wyatt Yager told the station. “It started to capsize.” His brother, Colin Yager, learned of what happened on his phone.
The crew from Station Portsmouth reported that the whale appeared to be unharmed. The incident was reported to the Center for Coastal Studies Marine Animal Alert Line and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The ship was also rescued.
The whale probably had no idea the boat was there, said Sara Morris of the University of New Hampshire Shoals Marine Laboratory.
“If you look at the video closely, you can see that the whale’s mouth is open,” he told the station. “It looks like it’s feeding and actually trying to catch fish.” (es/ft)
