A THIRD boat has been attacked by a pod of orcas off the coast of Portugal after dramatic footage showed one sinking on Saturday.
The coast guard was called into action on Monday to rescue four people on a sailboat in Costa da Caparica after “successive collisions with the bow caused by orcas”.
The moment a pleasure yacht was smashed into by a pod of orcas off the coast of Portugal on Saturday[/caption]
The boat was 10 nautical miles off the coast near to Lisbon when it was hit, according to the National Republican Guard.
The crew were forced to call for help, and were taken away to safety to the port of Cascais.
Footage from Saturday shows the moment at least three killer whales launched an attack on a luxury sailboat near to Fonte da Telha beach.
One of the orcas begin repeatedly striking the vessel which belonged to the Nautic Squad Club.
After several blows, the vessel can be seen tilting dangerously from side to side before slowly submerging and sinking to the bottom.
The five people on board were rescued while nearby vessels tried unsuccessfully to tow it to safety.
It sank shortly afterwards.
A second vessel was also immobilised in the same area on the weekend after it was struck in a similar fashion.
The National Maritime Authority said a boat with five people aboard had to be towed to shore after its rudder was broken, leaving it without steering.
