POD ATTACK
Shocking moment orcas attack yachts smashing their heads into vessels and biting rudder off the coast of Gibraltar
ORCAS have been filmed furiously attacking racing yachts by smashing their heads into the vessels off the coast of Gibraltar.
Two boats competing in The Ocean Race VO65 Sprint encountered the killer whales near the Straits of Gibraltar - also known as Orca Alley - on Thursday.
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Team JAJO of the Netherlands and Mirpuri Trifork Racing of Portugal both reported terrifying run-ins with the big fish.
The Dutch team incredibly captured the moment one of the gigantic orcas menacingly tried to interfere with their yacht on video.
The killer whale can be seen stalking the boat on an underwater camera before appearing to attempt to bite off the rudder.
It then opts to take a fiercer approach by accelerating towards the vessel and bashing its head directly against it.
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The crew, who also filmed the moment on deck, can be heard frantically banging on the boat in the hopes of diverting the deadly mammals.
Team JAJO skipper Jelmer van Beek explained three orcas had tailed them during the race before ramming head-first into their yacht.
Describing the "scary moment", he told how his crew desperately took down the sails and slowed their boat down to deter the killer whales.
Jelmer said: "Three orcas came straight at us and started hitting the rudders.
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"Impressive to see the orcas, beautiful animals, but also a dangerous moment for us as a team.
"We took down the sails and slowed down the boat as quickly as possible and luckily after a few attacks they went away.
"This was a scary moment."
Race Control received dual reports from the team and Mirpuri Trifork Racing of the approaching threats just before 3pm.
Despite the bombardment from the creatures, both crews were uninjured and no damage was reported to the boats.
The attacks took place in an area that has become notorious among sailors for clashes with killer whales.
Orcas have been "deliberately" swarming ships and slamming into them, in a campaign of terror that is believed to be led by a female orca named White Gladis.
She has supposedly been heading a witch-hunt against boats and teaching her young apprentices how to attack and sink them.
Scientists fear a "critical moment of agony" such as a collision may have sparked her aggression, and speculate she may now be spurring fellow killer whales on to target vessels.
These attacks, which range from orcas simply approaching boats to actively interfering with them, are said to have begun in 2020 around the Strait of Gibraltar.
Authorities noticed a steady uptick in incidents and restricted boats from sailing from the tip of Spain due to a staggering 29 reported orca attacks in four months.
The huge animals can measure 20 to 26 feet long, meaning they have been able to inflict thousands of pounds of damage on boats and even sink them altogether.
Last week, a sailor was left terrified after a pod of predators surrounded his small boat and unleashed their fury.
Luis Eduardo Alves Lima was sailing towards Ibiza when he noticed the orcas swimming near him - and at first he thought it was beautiful.
But the picturesque moment took a turn for the worse as the big fish began aggressively ramming his boat, breaking the rudder and nearly flipping the vessel.
Another skipper explained how his 50ft-long yacht was targeted by four orcas as he navigated his way through the Mediterranean.
Ian Hamilton told The Sun how the creatures ripped rudders from the vessel and proceeded to spin the 21-ton boat around like a child’s toy during his 90-minute ordeal.
He believes the assault on his boat, the Butey Of The Clyde, was being coordinated by the 25ft-long mother orca White Gladis.
Ian felt the highly intelligent predators, which have never killed humans in the wild, were staring back at him as they approached.
It came after a Brit experienced a night of terror after killer whales repeatedly bashed into her yacht leaving it flooding with water.
April Boyes, 31, captured the moment the big fish began targeting the boat for over an hour while she was trapped onboard off the coast of Spain.
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The creatures' constant bashes eventually destroyed the rudder and pierced the hull, with April suggesting it looked "like they are biting it apart."
The yacht ambush followed at least 20 orca attacks on small vessels in the Strait of Gibraltar in May alone.
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