Breaching Whale Capsizes Canoe, Drowning Man

Published : Wednesday, 21 Apr 2010, 10:16 PM EDT

A pod of pilot whales is being blamed in the accidental drowning of a man whose canoe capsized Wednesday in Provincetown Harbor, Mass., The Cape Cod Times reported.

A second man who fell out of the same canoe was safely rescued from the water.

WCVB-TV suggested a whale had leapt above the water -- a behavior known as breaching -- when it struck the canoe.

The dead man, a 47-year-old local, has not been formally named by officials.

He and his companion were with a group of canoeists who got into trouble near Long Point Lighthouse about 11am.

Outer Cape resident William Vannoy, who was also in the 12-foot (3.6m) canoe when it capsized, was pulled from the water by rescuers.

He told Coast Guard investigators that at least one pilot whale made contact with the canoe, tipping it over.

Both men were pulled from the cold water about 10 minutes later and taken to shore, but despite the efforts of medics, the dead man was unable to be revived.