Taxi Boat - Accident at Teahupoo - May 2022

Teahupoo accident Poti marara 28 mai 2022 Tahiti

Massive wave hits Taxi Boat
Tow-in à Teahupoo. Extreme surf
Teahupoo the most dangerous wave in the world

Spot de surf mythique situé à Tahiti en Polynésie française.
C'est ici que se déroulera l'épreuve de surf pour les Jeux Olympiques de 2024

[surfnskate]

This dude has been doing this for several years. It's only a matter of time before he gets someone killed. It's also dangerous to surfers exiting the barrel at full speed while blinded by the spit. You don't always exit the wave in complete control every time. Give us some space out there so we don't have to dodge boats while navigating one of the most dangerous waves in the world.

[scottgorman]

After reading hundreds of the comments I must put my 2 cents in "that guy piloting that boat is no captain by any stretch of the imagination"

[mark]

If I put my crew in that position, I'd be ashamed of myself.

[miles]

Imagine that was the first wave of the set👀

[jamespeterson]

That's not an accident, that's negligence.

[iangarnerlerose]

Those jet ski drivers are absolute HEROES!!!

[drdellaman]

The captain of that boat is reckless. No reason to put his passengers in danger like that. They came very close to flipping and had that happened someone could have died. Your number one priority as a captain is the safety of those on board. This captain failed at that and fortunately no one was hurt. Hope this fellow learned a lesson.

[johnlawler]

Unfortunately a fatal accident is bound to happen the way things are going. There needs to be more safety requirements and limited taxi boats out there

[OblivionYouTube]

Beyond lucky there was no follow up wave, that would of been a nightmare with how shallow that reef is. What a fuck wit

[theskepticalskeptic]

The boat traffic at this place makes humans look like a bunch of fools. There's no way they should be that close to the breaking surf especially at that place!

[FosterMedia]

Please, everyone read this account before passing judgement on the boat captain.

“This is my version of what happened at Teahupoo Saturday 28th May, ” writes Tim McKenna. ”We were on the orange Poti Marara fishing boat captained by Eric Labaste.
“At Teahupoo the present situation is this. Camera boats with professional photographers, cameramen and pro surfers who have been shooting the wave for years are getting gradually pushed towards the wave by an ever-increasing number of taxi boats, jet skis, tourists and locals wanting to get close to the action for a selfie or story.
“In addition at high tide some sets break closer to the channel compressing the zone even further. The first clip shows our boat getting caught a little too close to the first wave of a set with Joao Chumbo surfing on a wide set. Nothing dramatic, something Eric, myself and many other pros have experienced a hundred of times over the last 25-years. We know the risks of shooting around waves are fully prepared.
“However after that wave one of the photographers on our boat stood up without securing himself. In a flash of a second, he slipped falling out of the boat, camera in hand. Eric looked back to see how we could pick him up. The couple of seconds spent assessing the situation how to rescue him put the boat in a critical situation as the second wave of the set started to break even closer to the channel.
“Eric, instead of accelerating full throttle which would have launched the boat and thrown everyone overboard, stayed calm stabilising the boat ready to handle the face of the approaching 12ft wave but with an additional problem - a jet ski blocking his passage. “Once the boat was vertical the ice container came loose causing seasoned surf photographers and cameramen Chris Bryan, Ted Grambeau, Mendo De Dornellas, Natxo Gonzales, Aritz Aranburu and Jon Aspuru to be thrown into the water. Myself, veteran cameraman Olivier Ravel, Eric Bernatet and Andrew Fierro managed to stay on the boat.
“Eric, fisherman by trade, is the most respected, experienced waterman at Teahupoo and the Fenua Aihere area. His positioning, understanding of the Teahupoo channel and the way the wave breaks is unparalleled. Most of the photos and footage that has been seen worldwide has been shot thanks to Eric’s expertise. He is Teahupoo’s version of Fred North and his helicopter, Brian Keaulana and his jet ski, etc.
“Eric has now reached legendary status for his skill in handling successfully this extremely difficult situation. It is easy to criticise without knowledge of the conditions and actual sequence of events. The Ocean can be treacherous. Experience and keeping calm will always prevails over rash or hysterical behaviour.”

[richm]

The guy driving that boat always insists on sitting too close for some reason. He's not very smart. Eventually someone is going to get hurt or worse.

[zak-a-roo]

"Captain" almost killed his crew

[gabrielvillar]

I can only think how beautiful was everyone going in to help, not thinking in helping, just helping without thinking. Kudos to everyone involved and a little bit more attention for the captain.

[lip]

Is anyone gonna talk about the dude that jumped off the back of the boat and got sucked over the falls?! O.O

[tyson]

Crazy at :23 seconds. Looks like the guy on the back of the boat jumps right into the propellers. Also RIP to le baguette.

[thomasandersson]

What I react to is that those on board the boat do not wear life jackets!

[FelipeFigueira]

"Load a boat with 20 other people and do a 90 degrees manouver pointing the sun? Ok, doable, lets go for it!"

[kawailoadoo]

With no regard for the safety and well-being of his crew and passengers, and not immediately attending to the aid of those that went overboard thereafter, regardless of the lull after that 2nd wave, and thank God for that because this clear shows that captain’s incapacitated ability to perform any significance in a really dangerous situation. He looked like a deer frozen in headlights going up the wall of that wave and then coming down from it not knowing what to do next. Good teamwork on the fleet of jet skis to the rescue! 🙏

[felipericketts]

Whoever was driving that boat was negligent at best!