Humpback whale breaches, crashes into fishing boat off Moriches Inlet A humpback whale leaped from the water and smashed into a fishing boat off Moriches Inlet on Long Island, startling three fishermen but leaving both the boat and the whale unharmed. A humpback whale leaped out of the water and crashed into a fishing boat off Moriches Inlet on Long Island, dramatic video shows. The fishermen aboard escaped injury, and the whale appeared to swim away unharmed. Steven Heid was fishing Friday with his father-in-law and his nephew, Oliver Samter, when the whale appeared a few hundred yards away. The group had left Moriches Inlet near Fire Island on the East End when they spotted the animal. Numerous bunker fish were in the area, so Heid shut off the boat's engine to avoid hurting the whale with the propeller.Steven Heid Spots Whale Near BoatHe said the group had moved about 300 yards down the beach before the whale surfaced close to another boat. We were sitting there fishing, and before we knew it, the whale showed up about 10 feet behind the boat next to mine, Heid said. He told his nephew to grab his camera because he was in for a treat. Samter began recording as the whale swam closer.Seconds later, the giant humpback shot straight out of the water, causing fish to flee before it slammed into the vessel and busted the boat's hatch open. I was like, Holy cow, what just happened, Samter told an outlet. Heid said his first reaction was, Oh my God, this was absolutely insane and crazy. His second reaction was, Is my insurance company gonna cover this.I thought we might be going down, but the boat was OK, the whale was OK, Heid said. It was just crazy. The humpback, which typically weighs between 50,000 and 80,000 pounds, left the boat damaged but still afloat. Heid, who lives in Plainview, and his father-in-law have fished off the South Shore for decades and consider themselves conservationists.Whale Slams Into Fishing VesselBoat passenger Steven Bashion said the group had shut off the engine and was mindful of the wildlife around them. You have to be respectful, Bashion said. So the engine was off, the baitfish were around us, the wildlife was around us. Heid added that if it had not been such a strong boat, he thinks they would have gone over.Robert DiGiovanni of the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society said people should give whales space. You do not want the animal, you do not want any of these individuals hurt, so let us prepare and try to give them their space, DiGiovanni said. Whales and sharks have been making a comeback in Long Island's waters after decades of preferring other areas.Whale Sightings Increase Off Long IslandThe New York State Nature Conservancy Oceans and Fisheries Director Carl LoBue said in August that there was a time when seeing a whale here was a rare event. Now, there are multiple whale watching boats spotting whales nearly every day, and many times you can see them from the beach, LoBue said. The close encounter came as a humpback was tracked off Long Island's East End.