A moment, calm waters. The next one, a 900 pound dolphin landed on their boat

By Charlotte Graham-Mclay

Wellington, New Zealand (AP)-A placid fishing trip has become “Berserk” for three New Zealand men when a dolphin weighing more than 900 pounds seemed to fall from the sky before rushing into their small boat.

No one was seriously injured when the dolphin 11 feet by 11 feet jumped aboard the boat open on Friday, said Dean Harrison, the owner of the ship nearly 16 feet.

Harrison and two companions fished near the hole in the rock, a picturesque place off the north coast of northern island of New Zealand, while the dolphins are gambling in front. Men have seen a shadow through the brilliant summer sun and heard an all -powerful boom – before chaos takes place.

“He decided to jump on board and say hello,” said Harrison. “One minute, everything was fine and then just like striking lightning, there is a big dolphin in our boat struggling and breaking everything.”

The creature stroke broke “each fishing rod we had in the boat” and seriously damaged the arc while the trio hung alongside the ship, said Harrison. A man injured a minor with his arm where the male juvenile dolphin grazed his back and shoulder, but the three fishermen and the dolphin were not injured elsewhere.

But turning the majestic creature to the sea was not an option for the trio because of its size.

“We looked at the dolphin still alive and breathed and we thought that we have to start taking care of him and understanding what to do,” said Harrison. “Because he is stuck in the boat for the moment, then he comes for the journey.”

The men alerted the New Zealand conservation agency and were directed to a boat ramp at an hour’s drive, where the workers waited to help the dolphin. On the way, the trio used a pipe to keep the creature wet and protect it from the sun using a damp towel representing players of the All Blacks Rugby team.

On the shore, the members of a local Maori tribe prayed for the dolphin before it was returned to the ocean using a tractor. The aids have given the creature a name for 2 to 3 years: Tohu, which means “sign” in the Maori language.

Tohu is also the name of Dean Harrison’s boat.

“The Dolphin was able to swim and we were able to move away and we all have a story to tell,” he said. “This is a good end in a situation that could have been very different.”

Originally published: March 5, 2025 at 1:24 p.m. PST