This is the dramatic moment a pod of orcas rammed a sailing yacht off the coast of Spain, tearing apart its rudder as terrified crew members watched on.
Footage shows the killer whales swimming beneath the 42ft yacht Seika before repeatedly striking the vessel near Picamillo, in Galicia.
A large section of the rudder can be seen snapping off before rising to the surface of the water.
The five Ukrainian crew members on board can be heard repeatedly shouting ‘Oh my God’ as the orcas continue circling and hitting the yacht.
The encounter happened at around 7pm on Saturday after the Ignacio Montenegro Trophy regatta, which involved around 30 boats.
Seika was making its way towards the port of Baiona when it encountered four orcas.
The animals damaged the yacht’s rudder and tore away pieces of polyester, leaving the crew with reduced ability to steer the vessel.
Spain’s Maritime Rescue service was alerted and prepared a rescue vessel to assist, although Seika was ultimately able to make its own way back to shore.
None of the five people on board were injured, but the yacht was left needing repairs.
This is the dramatic moment a pod of orcas rammed a sailing yacht off the coast of Spain , tearing apart its rudder as terrified crew members watched on. A large section of the rudder can be seen snapping off before rising to the surface of the water
Footage shows the killer whales swimming beneath the 42ft yacht Seika before repeatedly striking the vessel near Picamillo, in Galicia
The five Ukrainian crew members on board can be heard repeatedly shouting ‘Oh my God’ as the orcas continue circling and hitting the yacht
The incident comes amid the return to the Galician coast of Iberian orcas linked to the so-called Gladises, a small group associated with repeated encounters with sailing boats around Spain and Portugal.
The unusual behaviour was first recorded in 2020 and has frequently involved the animals targeting vessels’ rudders.
At least nine boats have reportedly been sunk following encounters with the orcas, while around 250 others have been damaged.
More than 700 interactions have been recorded over the past five years.
It comes just weeks after another yacht sank off the Spanish coast after its rudder was damaged during an encounter with orcas.
Spanish coastguards said at the time: ‘A yacht has sunk 1.3 miles from Estaca de Bares as a result of taking on water after an interaction with orcas.
‘Its two crew members were picked up by a nearby motorboat and are safe.’
A private boat attempted to tow the stricken yacht after coming to the sailors’ aid, but was unable to prevent it from sinking.
Three other vessels reported seeing the pod in the area on the same day.
Earlier this year orcas sunk a yacht off Spain’s north-west coast after ramming another three in the same area.
Two people on board the pleasure craft called Idem had to be rescued after their rudder was destroyed and their boat began to sink.
The incident happened in July just over a mile off Estaca de Bares, the northernmost cape of the Iberian Peninsula located in the Galician province of La Coruna.
Local mayor Alfredo Dovale said a private boat aided the sailors and tried to tow their yacht to shore before it started disappearing under the sea.
A Spanish Coastguard vessel later took the pair to the nearby town of Carino while a helicopter flew over the area where the orca attack occurred to check for signs of pollution.
The two people on board the yacht were unharmed.
The incident that led to it sinking occurred on the same day as three other sailboat interactions with the giant mammals in the same area.
The vessels’ rudders were also targeted but the damage done did not prevent them reaching shore in two of the cases although in the other one the yacht was also crippled.
