Breaching whale capsized fisherman's boat; he recounts being in 'fight or flight mode'

A New Hampshire fisherman who had his boat capsized by a breaching whale shared his harrowing experience, describing the moments before and after the incident that was caught on video.

Ryland Kenney, who was compelled to enter the water to evade the whale, appeared on "America's Newsroom" with Colin Yager, one of the teenagers who assisted in his rescue, to share his thoughts on the event and why he acted the way he did.

"On Friday, Kenney described being in a fight or flight mode when he heard the whale crunch the engine, causing him to quickly jump off the boat. He explained that he jumped sideways, horizontally to escape the situation. When he hit the water, he experienced temperature shock due to the 55-degree water temperature, making it difficult for him to catch his breath."

"I couldn't find my friend Greg, who was under the boat. It felt like hours, but it was only about five seconds. Once we reunited, I felt calmer."

On Tuesday morning in Portsmouth Harbor, a whale breached out of the water and overturned the boat after landing on it, as shown in a shocking video.

Colin and his brother Wyatt were fishing on a boat in the harbor when a whale breached. They captured the incident on video and subsequently rushed to aid the struggling boaters, as reported by WMTW-TV.

""I was just in the right direction and saw the whole thing happen, thanks to my camera. I pressed the record button and captured everything on video," Yager said."

According to WBTS-TV, the U.S. Coast Guard confirmed that neither of the boaters were injured, and the whale appeared to be unharmed by the incident.

In New Hampshire waters, whales are frequently observed, particularly during the months of June to August. Prior to the incident, a whale was spotted in the same area where the breach occurred.

Prior to the incident, Kenney's family inquired about the possibility of something like this occurring.

"I took pictures of a whale breaching days before and had dinner with my family. My family asked if I was scared of the whale potentially knocking my boat in the water. I said that I had done research and the probability of that happening was like lightning strikes. Unfortunately, lightning struck the next day."

Planet Chronicle' Brie Stimson contributed to this report.