Norwegian sailors recount orca attack off Portugal, improvising with vinegar and engine revs to survive

Five 20-year-old Norwegian sailors have described a killer whale attack on their sailboat off the coast of Portugal, saying they improvised with vinegar and engine power to fend off the animals after their rudder was damaged and steering failed.

The incident occurred Saturday off the coast near Fonte da Telha beach, as the group on the Nova Vida was sailing north from Lisbon toward the fishing town of Sines. Video of the encounter shows the yacht as orcas rammed the hull and sent the vessel’s steering wheels spinning out of control. Elise Wurschmidt, one of the five on board, said the wheel began spinning moments after they saw a “huge orca” close to the boat, and that the rudder eventually broke when struck beneath the hull.

With the wheel locked in place, the crew could only drift in circles as orcas continued to strike the hull. The group sept kept calm and looked for a way to keep the boat from going down. They turned on the engine and tried an improvised defense, pouring vinegar into the water around the vessel in the hope that the liquid might deter the animals. They also attempted to reverse the engine, reasoning that backing up would create a different flow around the hull and might push the whales away.

“We turned on the engine and some minutes later, the wheel just starts to spin uncontrolled,” Elise recalled. “We figured something might be wrong and then on the side of the boat we could just see a huge orca.” She said that when the rudder mechanism fractured, the steering could no longer be used, and the boat was left to drift.

The orca encounters coincided with a separate, more dire scene nearby: the Oceanview, another vessel carrying tourists, was attacked by a larger pod. Elise said that one or two orcas targeted the Nova Vida while five or six orcas struck the other boat. The Oceanview eventually sank, and the five passengers aboard were rescued, though the group heard the captain speak calmly about the situation rather than displaying overt emotion.

"We don't want to hurt the orcas," Elise said, noting that the crew had considered using flares or underwater devices but chose restraint. The size and scale of the whales — described as six-metre animals — underscored the danger, she added, especially given the rough seas and the proximity to shore.

The Nova Vida managed to install its emergency rudder and, after several tense hours, the crew regained enough control to motor toward Cascais, about 10 nautical miles to the north. It took two to three hours before the steering wheel could be used normally again, but the vessel stayed afloat and navigated back to safer waters.

The Oceanview’s sinking occurred about 500 metres away from the Nova Vida. A coast guard RIB shadowed the two boats for a period as responders coordinated rescue efforts and prioritized other incidents that required attention due to the Oceanview’s severe flooding.

The group aboard the Nova Vida, which includes Elise, Thelma Hvidsten Hem, Eva Hole Rødland, Amalie Sundnes Harjo, and Lisa Strand Festervoll, have documented their travels on Instagram as they plan to circumnavigate the world. They connected through A+ World Academy, a sailing-based student exchange program that combines schooling at sea with world travel. The plan, they say, remains to continue their voyage after repairs.

The Fatuhiva, their other boat, had previously hit a sand dune near Kiel, Germany, in August, prompting repairs. In the Bay of Biscay, the two boats planned to sail together while the Nova Vida recovered. Their experience near Lisbon, while harrowing, did not deter them from the broader goal of completing a global voyage.

Authorities later confirmed that the Oceanview’s passengers were rescued and that the Nova Vida’s crew would require several weeks of repairs to her hull and rigging before she could sail again. A coast guard RIB continued to monitor the area and offer support as the two boats assessed damage and safety options for their continuing voyage. The group remains committed to their circumnavigation objective, signaling through their online updates that they intend to press on when conditions allow.