British Tourists Reveal How They Were Almost Crushed By A Humpback Whale

Two British tourists were lucky to escape with their lives after a gigantic humpback whale leapt from the ocean and landed straight on top of their kayak.

Tom Mustill was out on the ocean in California with his friend Charlotte Kinlich when the 30-tonne whale came crashing down on them. While the incident took place in 2015, they have now returned to Monterey Bay - where it happened - to talk about it with people who have experienced similar ordeals for a new TV show.

In an interview with the Telegraph, Mustill said that the sensaton was akin to feeling 'like being in an avalanche' or like 'a bus' landing on them.

Wow. That sucks.

They are both really surprised and grateful to still be alive. Tom added: "I remember coming to the surface and thinking, 'How am I not dead? Maybe I've got lots of injuries but I'm in shock and can't feel them.'

"Then I saw Charlotte and thought, 'How is she not dead?'"

The pair, who are from London, were on holiday at the time and had heard about a large gathering of humpback whales just off the coast near where they were.

Not wanting to pass up a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, they set off with another friend for a whale watching expedition.

For a few hours everything was idyllic, but as they were about to head back to the shore, a whale breached and came down right on top of them.

Tom, a 31-year-old wildlife filmmaker, continued: "We had an amazing couple of hours, and we were heading home. There were whales on the surface that we were watching, but we didn't see this one.

"When a whale breaches you don't see it on the surface because it has to get momentum from quite deep down.

"Then we saw it. It was above us and all I could see was this whale crashing towards us, blocking out the light. I thought, 'Oh, I'm going to die now.'"

Luckily for them, they didn't die. Although they did get dragged underneath the waves and battered about. It was an experience that Mustill compared to 'going over a waterfall but underwater'. Imagine that, if you can.

Anyway, Tom and Charlotte's remarkable survival story is to be told this Friday evening on BBC Two as part of a new documentary. Humpback Whales: A Detective Story will screen at 9pm on Friday 8 February.

That sounds a damn sight safer than being in a flimsy kayak in California.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: News, Interesting, Weird, Animals

Tom Wood

Tom Wood is a freelance journalist and LADbible contributor. He graduated from University of London with a BA in Philosophy before studying for a Masters in Journalism at the University of Salford. He has previously written for the M.E.N Group as well as working for several top professional sports clubs. Contact him on [email protected]

@TPWagwim