Long Beach Island, New Jersey – A 20-foot minke whale was found dead after a violent collision with a pleasure boat on Saturday along the Jersey Shore. The unusual encounter was captured on video by shocked onlookers – it shows the whale swimming up to a motionless boat, which rolls to the side when the whale collides with it, knocking a person into the water.
The Marine Mammal Stranding Center (MMSC) commented on the August 2 incident, writing:
At approximately 3:40 pm a boater in the area reported that a vessel had struck the whale, causing the vessel to nearly capsize and a passenger to go overboard. While the Stranding Coordinator was still enroute, Sea Tow, who had remained on scene to observe the whale, reported that the animal was deceased.
The agency said that the whale carcass will be towed to a state park for a necropsy to determine the exact cause of death – the body is expected to be moved on Monday morning with the assistance of Sea Tow.
It is unclear if the whale was suffering from some type of medical issue before colliding with the boat. There are reports that the whale was in very shallow water before the boat collision.
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