SHREDDED RUDDER AND €23,000 DAMAGE
Alfonso Vega suffered one of the most aggressive encounters with orcas last summer aboard his Jeanneau Voyage 1120, Urki. The Spanish search and rescue pilot was sailing from Vigo in south Galicia, to Asturias on Spain’s northern coast on a 250-mile passage with a friend. They were around seven miles offshore when orcas began attacking boats in their vicinity.
“At around 1230am I heard on the radio a Mayday call from a French sailboat that was being attacked by the orcas. I checked their position on the GPS by the AIS and they were six miles away from me.
“So I called the search and rescue tower directly to tell them that I was very close to the French yacht. I changed my heading to help the French couple, and during that time, the search and rescue department sent a very fast boat to the area.
“Then what I did was to switch my course 180°, with maximum power and the engine. But it was not enough – two hours later, the orcas were on my position, and they were biting the rudder. It is a very strong boat, but they needed just a minute to destroy the rudder and helm structure.”
The orcas kept attacking Urki for an hour and a half, until a rescue tow boat came to assist. “When I first realised I had orcas around me I stopped the engine, I dropped sails and switched off all the electronics. Those were the recommendations.
“But on a sailing boat, you can't see them approaching you. They suddenly appear at the bottom of the boat. The first thing you feel is the smack of an orca to the rudder, it’s a tremendous hit.”
Even once under tow, the orcas continued hitting Urki for another hour.
The damage to Urki cost €23,000 to repair, including rebuilding the steering system and dropping the keel to replace all the keel bolts. Vega was planning to cross the Atlantic last autumn, and was forced to delay until this September instead.
“The problem is now I'm in Asturias I don't know which way should be my route to the Canaries. I'm expecting to go via... I don't know, the UK or Iceland because the orcas are in the middle of my route!
Vega describes the situation as very frightening. “This is going to be a crazy summer with thousands of sailboats crossing that area. It's a matter of time that somebody is going to be killed.”
'On a sailing boat, you can't see them approaching you'