Whale capsizes boat along New Jersey shore
A photo on the Friends of Seaside Park Facebook page shows the boat on the shore.
SEASIDE PARK, N.J. - Two people survived after they were tossed into the ocean when a breaching whale capsized their boat along the New Jersey shore.
The occupants of the 25-foot (7-meter) boat were fishing close to the shore Monday when the whale surfaced and knocked the vessel out of the water. They managed to swim to shore and the boat eventually washed up on the beach.
There were no reports of injuries.
The whale swam away.
"The whale did what whales usually do — they’re looking for food, and they don’t pay attention,” Robert Schoelkopf, the director of the Brigantine-based Marine Mammal Stranding Center told NJ.com.
Schoelkopf told the Asbury Park Press it likely was a humpback whale that was feeding on menhaden close to shore. His staff collected DNA samples from the bottom of the boat in hopes of identifying the type of whale.
Other people reported seeing whales in the same spot on Saturday. Laura Burton posted a photo of a breaching whale and said she had seen approximately five whales in that encounter.
With the Associated Press