An 18-foot minke whale died after colliding with a ship in Barnegat Bay on Saturday, officers stated.
The incident occurred within the bay within the north finish of Lengthy Seaside Island, not removed from the Excessive Bar Harbor neighborhood.
Video obtained by NBC10 confirmed the second the whale crashed into the boat, knocking a lady overboard and practically tipping the boat over.
Boat Captain Charlie Nunn stated the accident was not a freak accident not attributable to antagonizing the whale, and that the girl is fortunate she was not harm.
“Definitely a close call, a freak accident,” Nunn stated. “They were certainly not antagonizing it in any way. I think they were in that area prior to the whale going through there.”
Nunn additionally stated the forceful collision was doubtless attributable to the whale getting anxious and going into fight-or-flight mode.
Courtesy of CAPTAIN GEORGE
Courtesy of CAPTAIN GEORGE
Photograph of the minke whale who died within the collision.
“They’re not supposed to be in three feet of water,” Nunn stated. “They keep bumping into something, it’s probably fight-or-flight for the poor thing.”
In accordance with the Marine Mammal Standing Middle, the whale was lifeless earlier than they arrived on the scene.
