Two sailors were forced to issue a mayday alert after their yacht came under an organized attack from a pod of killer whales. The French vessel was only a few miles off the northern coast of Spain when the orcas began ramming the side of the boat. The Coast Guard dispatched a rescue boat, and both people aboard the yacht, including one person reported to be 60, were picked up and safely transported back to port. Rescuers have told the local press that it’s “uncommon” for such organized attacks to take place that far north, with most reports happening along the southern Strait of Gibraltar, a narrow stretch of water dubbed “orca alley.” In extreme cases, orca attacks have proven so severe that the massive ocean mammals have succeeded in sinking some boats by repeatedly ramming the vessels’ sterns. Tuesday’s encounter now has sailors in the area on high alert, with authorities as far away as the U.K. warning boats to switch off their engines and lower their sails if they catch sight of a pod to minimize the odds of provoking an attack.
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