Whale in New York Harbor

There's a humpback whale cruising around New York Harbor, and photojournalist Bjoern Kils of New York Media Boat tracked and photographed it. Reuters has picked up our photos and story and you can order your prints here: www.nymediaboat.photoshelter.com

The whale was playful, slapping its fluke swimming past the Statue of Liberty, as Capt. Bjoern snapped away -- while keeping a safe and respectful distance.

This is not the same whale that we photographed in the Hudson River in 2016. Each whale has unique markings/scars on their fluke, back and dorsal fin. A comparison of images has concluded that these are two different animals.

It was a nice moment in an otherwise tough year. The New York Media Boat team has high hopes for summer 2021, and we hope you’ll come aboard for a tour!

Humpback Whale in New York Harbor: VIDEO

We've tracked the whale through New York Harbor for about 13 hours over three days, mostly taking photos (see previous blogs) but also some video. Here's a clip of it surfacing next to our boat:

We tried to maintain a 100 yard distance at all times, but the whale took a liking to our boat in New York Harbor.

The below clips are available in ProRes 422 1920x1080 @ 29.97fps, ©2016 Bjoern Kils/New York Media Boat

New York Media Boat has been tracking the whale for three days. Check out our unique photos on the blog at www.NYmediaBoat.com!

New FDNY fireboat: WILLIAM M. FEEHAN

A massive water salute erupted in New York Harbor, as the newest FDNY fireboat arrived just after 3pm today. She is named after Firefighter William M. Feehan who died in the 9/11 attacks. The name plates with red letters crafted from I-beam steel collected at ground zero are displayed on each side of the wheelhouse. 

Her 66-foot aluminum hull houses three C-18 Caterpillar engines for propulsion, delivering 1150HP each. Another 450HP Caterpillar C-9 engine drives the water pumps, and for additional pumping power, one of the main C-18 engines can be assigned to the main water canon. She delivers up to 7,000 gallons of seawater per minute and foam and purple-K additives are also on board if needed.

Her crew of five firemen consists of a pilot, an engineer, an officer and two deckhands -- safely housed inside the positive-pressure CBRNE (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosives) filtration system equipped bridge.

The $4.7-million medium-sized fast-response boat built by MetalCraft Marine in Kingston, Canada will be stationed at MARINE 6 in the East River, at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.