Sailboat Crashes into New Jersey Jetty in Heavy Surf (Video)

Originally posted on SURFER | By Dashel Pierson | Last updated Jul 25, 2025 8:24 PM ET

On Wednesday, chaos ensued in New Jersey. A sailboat found itself in unruly ocean conditions, which led to the vessel crashing into a jetty in the town of Avalon.

A mayday call was issued around 11:00am. 10 people were aboard the ship when it ran into trouble, and they were later rescued by EMS and water rescue swimmers, after they abandoned ship. And the boat, due to the damage from the collision, later sank.

According to Avalon Beach Patrol Chief Matt Wolf, the boat was "pinned against the rocks. They [the passengers] were swimming for their lives. It was a really, really dangerous situation.” Luckily, all 10 passengers were rescued following the crash.

Wolf continued: “We had rescue equipment in the water. We had several assets out there…jet ski, lifeboats, paddleboards. We had swimmers on the beachside.”

About 40 rescue officials were on the scene to rescue the two instructors and eight teenagers aboard the boat.

Apparently, the boat experienced a mechanical failure in which the engine broke, and the sails were down. That, coupled with the rough ocean conditions, led to the crash.

Wolf commended the safety teams who helped out:

“There’s not too many people, or organizations, that could have pulled off a rescue like that. I think that’s a credit to our guards. Some of those lifeguards that were down there went above and beyond. They were definitely heroes down there.”

In other boat carnage news, there’s been a handful of issues going down in Indonesia. Boat fires, boats capsizing, and boats getting slammed by giant waves.

First it was the planes that were having all the issues, now boats, too?

This article first appeared on SURFER and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: