A pod of four orcas attacked a 42ft sailing yacht called Seika off the coast of Galicia, northern Spain, tearing off part of its rudder as its five Ukrainian crew members looked on in fear. The incident, captured on video, highlights the ongoing and escalating pattern of orca encounters with sailing vessels in the region, which has caused significant damage to boats and prompted safety concerns for sailors navigating Iberian waters.

The attack occurred at around 7pm on Saturday as Seika headed towards the port of Baiona following the Ignacio Montenegro Trophy regatta, which had involved roughly 30 boats. The orcas struck the rudder and stripped away pieces of polyester, hampering the crew's ability to steer, though the yacht managed to reach shore under its own power without assistance from Spain's Maritime Rescue service, which had been placed on standby. No one was hurt, but the boat requires repairs. The incident is linked to a small group of Iberian orcas known as the "Gladises", whose unusual rudder-targeting behaviour was first recorded in 2020; more than 700 such interactions have since been logged, with at least nine boats sunk and around 250 damaged, including another yacht that sank near Estaca de Bares just weeks earlier.