SW-INC-0288SeaWise Incidents

Spiral of Life - Casal diz que veleiro encalhou na Nazaré para fugir a suposto ataque de orcas

likely · 1 sourceN
Vessel
Spiral of LifeVessel
When
2025
Outcome
Returned safely
Summary

What happened.

Early on 1 December 2025 a Dutch couple delivering the 14-metre yacht Spiral of Life from Croatia to the Netherlands ran her aground at Nazaré, Portugal, around 0330. They said orcas had struck the hull and sent the rudder spinning, so the skipper steered for the beach as advised. Both reached shore unhurt; authorities were still investigating the orca claim.

In the small hours of Monday 1 December 2025, a Dutch couple were off Nazaré on the Portuguese coast, delivering a 14-metre yacht called Spiral of Life that they had bought in Croatia and were sailing home to the Netherlands. According to the skipper — reported as Michael Levering, 32, sailing with his 31-year-old partner — the boat was struck repeatedly at about half past three in the morning: he felt the hull hit, saw the rudder spinning uncontrollably, and heard the breathing of an orca alongside. Facing what he read as a loss of steering under active attack, he did what current advice for a serious orca encounter close to shore suggests and pointed the boat at the beach, deliberately grounding her near the rocks below the Nazaré headland rather than risk being disabled and adrift offshore. Both got ashore without injury, and the yacht was later refloated by a fishing boat and professional divers and towed into Nazaré port. One caution belongs on this record: the orca attack is the couple's own account. Portuguese authorities said they were investigating and had not confirmed the cause, so SeaWise reports it as a claim, not a finding — while the seamanship decision, choosing a controlled grounding over an uncontrolled drift, stands on its own.

SeaWise noteWhen steering fails near a hostile shore, a grounding you choose can beat a drift you don't. This skipper picked his spot and put the boat there deliberately, and both crew walked away. Note too the discipline SeaWise asks of every log: the safe escape is fact; the orca cause is a claim still being checked. Record the two apart.
Lessons learned

What it teaches.

  • 1
    A deliberate, controlled grounding can beat an uncontrolled drift. Believing his steering was failing under attack near shore, this skipper chose where and how to put the boat aground rather than be disabled offshore. A planned beaching on your terms is sometimes the safer bad option.
    running aground loss of steering
  • 2
    Know the current orca-encounter guidance before you sail Iberian waters. The skipper acted on standard advice for a serious interaction. Learn the recommended responses — and treat sudden loss of steering as the first symptom to manage.
    loss of steering
  • 3
    Separate what happened from what caused it. The grounding and safe escape are confirmed; the orca attack is the crew's account and was still being investigated. In your own log, record observations and claims distinctly from established fact.
Sources

Where this comes from.

News· Southern Africa & adjacent seas sailing newsCasal diz que veleiro encalhou na Nazaré para fugir a suposto ataque de orcasVisit ↗

SeaWise indexes and links to primary sources; it does not host their reports or media. Crew are referred to by role unless documented consent is on file.

From SeaWise

Procedures involved.

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Record IDSW-INC-0288
Curated bySeaWise editorial
Confidencelikely · 1 source
Record typeIncident

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