The New South Wales Marine Police said the two men were on board the boat when it was struck by a whale, causing it to capsize at around 6 a.m. on September 30 (local time) in waters off the suburb of La Perouse, 14 kilometers southeast of Sydney, according to AFP.
The first man was pulled from the water unconscious and died at the scene, while the second was treated by paramedics and is in a stable condition in hospital.
A whale crashed into a boat off the coast of Australia on the morning of September 30, with two people on board, resulting in casualties.
Captured from ABC clip
New South Wales Police Water Commissioner Siobhan Munro said a whale had come close to or possibly boarded the 4.8m boat. "Initial indications are they (the two men) may have been in the water for 45 minutes," Munro said, according to Australia's ABC News.
Ms Munro added that this was the first case of a whale involved in a boat-related fatality that she had witnessed in her career.
"There are whales out there and there are lots of cases of whales striking alongside boats... but this is a tragic accident," Ms Munro stressed.
New South Wales Marine Services Director Mark Hutchings said there were some whales migrating south of Sydney. "If you are on the water, you need to keep 100 metres away from an adult whale and 300 metres away from a whale with a calf," Hutchings said.
The incident comes less than two weeks after a 4-meter-long humpback whale was struck in the head by a boat propeller off the coast of Western Australia, according to AFP.
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