Marino Gherbavaz, 51, was enjoying a whale watching trip with his family when he was knocked off the boat.
A family trip took a dramatic turn after a whale knocked 51-year-old Marino Gherbavaz off a sightseeing boat in Algoa Bay on 3 April.
According to Daily Mail, Gherbavaz was on a whale-watching boat ride with his 22-year-old daughter, Gillian, and the rest of his family when the scene unfolded.
Gillian told the publication the family from Gqeberha were watching dolphins herd sardines into a bait ball when the whale grabbed the opportunity for a free lunch and struck the boat in the process.
In footage of the incident, screams can be heard as the family think they had hit a rock before the whale is seen on the other side of the boat.
The family then realises the whale knocked Gherbavaz off the boat.
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“When I realised it was my dad in the water, I panicked. I could not understand why he was in the ocean. He is not normally the type to make a spectacle, so I was very confused. Once I knew he was okay and could swim to the boat on his own I relaxed.”
“The whale and dolphins had moved on so I couldn’t see any immediate danger,” Gillian told the publication.
“Relax, relax, relax,” a woman tells Gherbavaz, who is at this point swimming back to the boat.
He was safely helped into another boat.
Compiled by Vhahangwele Nemakonde
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