A group of sightseers aboard a B.C. whale-watching tour boat experienced a too-close-for-comfort encounter with the very mammal they were searching for when their vessel struck a humpback whale on Monday and two passengers were injured as a result.
The 11 tourists on board one of the Prince of Whales Whale Watching鈥檚 smaller zodiac boats were observing a humpback whale in the area near Race Rocks Ecological Reserve, off the coast of Victoria, B.C., on Monday afternoon, Ben Duthie, the company鈥檚 operation manager said.
When the group was finished looking at the whale, the boat departed the area at an estimated speed of between 25 to 35 knots, or the equivalent of about 45 to 65 km/h in a car.
鈥淎fter about three minutes of the vessel transiting away from the animal that was spotted, the vessel struck what was thought to be a humpback whale,鈥� Duthie told CTV Vancouver Island on Tuesday. 鈥淭hat animal had not been previously observed and happened to surface immediately in front of the vessel.鈥�
The collision caused the vessel鈥檚 bow to lift in the air and two passengers were shifted to the side of the boat and injured, Duthie said. The tour boat returned to harbour where paramedics transported the injured to hospital.
The severity of the injuries was undisclosed but one of the passengers was released by Tuesday. The captain of the tour boat also suffered a minor ankle injury, according to the company鈥檚 operations manager.
The Transportation Safety Board and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans both confirmed to CTV Vancouver Island that they were aware of the incident.
The DFO said an initial investigation determined the whale was unhurt in the collision. The government agency said it was still deciding on whether or not it will investigate a case of possible animal endangerment.
The whale could have suffered blunt force trauma from the boat, said one concerned expert from the Vancouver Aquarium.
鈥淪ometimes it can be an injury that doesn鈥檛 really manifest itself for a few days,鈥� Martin Haulena, the aquarium鈥檚 head veterinarian said. 鈥淚t might not be immediately clear that there was any damage to the whale.鈥�
Prince of Whales Whale Watching says this is the first time this has happened in its 22 years in operation. Duthie said they would conduct their own internal investigation, but that the captain was abiding by all of the area鈥檚 whale-watching guidelines.
With a report from CTV Vancouver Island's Scott Cunningham
