The Japanese whalers moved in in attack formation. These pictures from the below link. They began cutting across the bow of the ship, at one point hitting it and by the looks caused considerable damage (see video below).
The assault is an attempt to deter the Sea Shepherd ships from their current position, blocking the slipway of the Nisshin Maru, preventing the whalers from loading whales poached from the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.
During the attack, which lasted until around 0900 AEDT, the harpoon vessels overtook the Sea Shepherd ships from the stern, crossing the bow and coming as close as three to five metres. The Bob Barker was struck by the Yushin Maru No. 3 during one such dangerous manoeuver. Prior to that collision, Captain Peter Hammarstedt of The Bob Barker and Captain Siddarth Chakravarty of The Steve Irwin had been able to steer out of the path of the encroaching harpoon vessels, only narrowly avoiding numerous potential collisions as the vessels moved in a circuit, weaving through and around the Sea Shepherd ships.
The whaling vessels have also made consecutive attempts to foul the propellers of the Sea Shepherd ships by dragging steel cable across the bow of the conservation ships. Further, the crew of the whaling vessels threw projectiles at The Steve Irwin’s small boat crew and turned water cannons on The Bob Barker’s small boat crew as they attempted to cut the steel cables.
This season, Sea Shepherd’s direct intervention has led to a disastrous January for the illegal operations of the Japanese whaling fleet. Early interception and a persistent chase has enabled the Sea Shepherd Fleet to effectively suspend whaling operations and allowed the fleet to take up position and secure the slipway of the Nisshin Maru. more
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