Killer whale attacks continue on ships in the waters of Cadiz

Killer whale attacks have continued on ships in the waters off Cadiz.

killer whale attacks by a pod of orcas have again been reported in the waters of Cádiz. Two boats have suffered from their attacks, both rudders were destroyed and had to be towed into port by the Maritime Emergency Service.

Since March this year, 56 boats in total have suffered incidents off the coast of Cadiz and 25 of them have had to be towed to shore. To avoid further incidents, restrictions have been put in place: sailboats of less than 15 meters in length will not be allowed to sail between Cape Trafalgar and Punta Paloma until further notice.

Scientists have been left baffled by incidents of orcas ramming sailing boats along the Spanish and Portuguese coasts.

From southern to northern Spain, sailors have sent distress calls after worrying encounters. with the killer whales. Two boats lost part of their rudders, at least one crew member suffered bruising from the impact of the ramming, and several boats have sustained serious damage.

Ezequiel Andreu, a researcher working in the Atlantic Orca Working Group, commenting in relation to the incidents with orcas suffered by sailboats in the surroundings of Tarifa and Barbate these last months, said that it is important “to follow the protocol that has been developed, and that is based on the experiences that have taken place in July of last year when there were the first interactions, of which there is a reference, and in which there has been a rudder break”.

Experts explain that the protocol before these attacks happen is to stop the boat, put the automatic pilot on and try to make as little noise as possible.

The killer whale or orca is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family, of which it is the largest member. It is recognisable by its black-and-white patterned body

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