The crew of the Moya 2 lost steering near the Cíes Islands after an orca struck the yacht’s rudder. The animal, part of a pod moving through Galician waters, hit hard enough to leave the boat adrift and its crew facing an unexpected emergency.
Salvamento Marítimo responded to the distress call just after midday. The Moya 2 still had engine power, but the helm was useless. Scientists aboard the nearby research vessel Evangelina quickly pieced together what had happened: a group of seven or eight orcas had intercepted the yacht, and one broke its rudder. The yacht made it back to Baiona at six knots, escorted by rescue teams. The crew was shaken but unhurt.
This wasn’t the only incident. The day before, another yacht in a regatta off O Grove had its rudder damaged in a similar encounter, forcing it to change course. Both incidents happened during the seasonal passage of orca pods through the Rías Baixas, a pattern that has become more common since 2020, information from the Ministry for Ecological Transition.
Alfredo López, a marine biologist with CEMMA, was tracking the orcas that day. He said the pod, moving between the Cíes and Ons islands, approached the Moya 2 as it traveled at speed. “They interpret velocity as a risk and try to stop it,” López said, rejecting the idea that the orcas were acting aggressively toward people. Some of the orcas grow to six meters long. They targeted the rudder, a weak spot on smaller boats. Larger vessels like the 20-meter Evangelina are less likely to be hit directly.
Researchers documented the encounter, taking hundreds of photos to identify individual orcas by their dorsal fins. The pod, seven or eight animals including the one that struck, surfaced near the yacht. These images will help determine whether the same orcas are involved in repeated incidents along the Galician coast.
La Voz de Galicia reported that on September 2, 2026, Spain's Ministry for Ecological Transition announced it had submitted materials to the environmental prosecutor regarding the orca known as Toñi. The ministry asked the Guardia Civil to investigate possible involvement of vessels and conduct a ballistics analysis. Toñi, an orca with a previously injured dorsal fin, was reported to be recovering. Her reappearance off Galicia coincided with the latest yacht incidents.
López says instinct, not malice, is behind the behavior. The orcas’ annual migration follows tuna from North Africa through the Strait of Gibraltar and up the Atlantic coast. Between June and August, they track their prey north, sometimes reaching the Bay of Biscay or the French coast before heading south again. Their brief stay in Galician waters brings them close to local boat traffic, and fast-moving yachts seem to trigger their urge to intervene.
The Ministry for Ecological Transition calls these events “interactions” rather than attacks, but sailors feel the impact. Damaged rudders and interrupted trips have prompted new protocols and closer monitoring amid concern about more serious incidents. CEMMA’s research, carried out with official approval, aims to better understand these encounters and reduce them.
For sailors in Galicia, speed and size matter when orcas are nearby. Smaller, faster boats are more likely to draw attention, and action, from these animals. As reported earlier, even minor technical weaknesses can have big consequences at sea. In the case of the Moya 2, quick thinking and a working engine prevented disaster. Orca encounters have become impossible to ignore. Spain’s Atlantic sailors are learning to adapt as the line between wildlife and human activity grows less clear, and safe-passage rules shift with the animals themselves.
