A dolphin leaped onto a boat in Southern California, breaking both a woman’s ankles and ‘punched’ her daughter.

Chrissie Frickman was boating with her husband and two children on June 21 when a pod of dolphins swam alongside them. One of the animals jumped on the vessel, knocking Frickman over and landing on her legs.

“The dolphin jumped and we thought it was doing a flip and I guess it miscalculated,” said her husband, Dirk Frickman. He told the Orange County Register: “It hit my wife and knocked her over, and punched my daughter.

“The dolphin was flopping all over,” he said. “It cut its nose and its tail. Blood started splattering everywhere.”

Frickman pulled his wife free and called authorities as he headed toward an Orange County harbor. While he steered, he splashed water on the 350-pound dolphin to keep it alive.

“I could hear my phone buzzing and beeping on the floor – it was covered in blood,” he said.

At the harbour, Frickman removed all the seats from the boat and got help pulling the dolphin onto the dock with a rope.

“We got her up on the dock and pushed right back in the water,” he said. “She was fine and took off pretty quick.”

His wife is still recovering from her injuries.