Woman Crushed By Leaping Dolphin

[matcom]

<snip>

A New Zealand woman is in critical condition in hospital after being crushed by a dolphin that leaped on to her boat, media reported on Wednesday.

The 27-year-old woman had been watching from the bow of the small boat cruising among the marine mammals off the North Island's Coromandel Peninsula on Tuesday when the bottlenose dolphin landed on her, the New Zealand Herald said.

She suffered serious head injuries and was flown to hospital in Auckland.

The dolphin also smashed the boat's windshield and bow rails before jumping back into the ocean, witnesses told the Herald.

Coast guard official Steve Taylor said the dolphin probably got over-excited and jumped on to the boat, although he had never heard of such an incident before.

Bottlenose dolphins, which can measure up to 2.5 metres (8.2 feet) in length and weigh as much as 260 kg (572 pounds), are known for their friendly behavior toward human beings and seldom become aggressive.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061227/od_nm/newzealand_dolphin_dc

[mikeytherat]

1. From "The Simpsons"

Boy: Jump, Free Willy! Jump with all your might!
(boy screams, there is a loud, moist "thud")

Father: Oh, no! Free Willy's crushed our boy! Ooooo, what a mess.

Homer Simpson: I don't like this new "Director's Cut."

mikey_the_rat