Overview

• A sailing yacht sank off Costa da Caparica near Lisbon after orcas breached the hull, and the crew was rescued without injuries.
• Efforts to tow the vessel failed because the leak was too large, and rescuers later placed buoys to mark the wreck for recovery.
• Authorities and local media reported additional same-day interactions near Costa da Caparica, a rescue of five people from a tourist boat off Cascais, and a yacht in distress near Fonte da Telha.
• Researchers have documented a multiyear rise in orca-boat incidents across the western Iberian coast, the Bay of Biscay, and the Strait of Gibraltar, with more reports now in shallow coastal areas.
• A local sailing school urged cautious, nonaggressive responses around the animals, and widely shared footage shows the attack and the yacht's sinking.