Warning issued after shark grabs man's hand and pulls him off boat in Florida Everglades
A warning has been issued after a man was pulled from his boat and into the water after a shark latched onto his arm.
A fisherman, who has been identified only as Nick, was washing off his hands on the side of his boat after catching and releasing a fish he caught in the Florida Everglades. You can see footage of the incident here:
However, things took a dramatic turn, when a shark appeared from the murky water and lunged at him - the shark managed to grab Nick by the hand, causing him to fall head first into the water.
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The clip, which was shared online by fishing guide Captain Mark Gore, shows the man briefly scrambling in the water, before he’s able to get back to the safety of the boat.
According to a post on Instagram, Michael Russo who was on the boat at the time, has said that following the incident they rushed Nick back to land, where park rangers helped him get airlifted to the hospital.
He said: "Today was one of the scariest days on the water I have ever had. It started off great and we were crushing the fish but the sharks were eating some, despite our best efforts.
"After releasing a snook, Nick washed his hands in the water and was immediately bit by a large [lemon] shark. There was no chum or blood in the water and the sharks were unprovoked.
“The sharks are no joke in the Everglades and the warnings about keeping your hands out of the water are not an exaggeration. Please take this as a lesson and keep your hands out of the water because this could have been prevented. He was rushed back to the dock and the Park Rangers were a lifesaver (literally). He was airlifted to the hospital and is in the best care possible.”
Fellow anglers were quick to issue similar warnings after seeing the clip online.
Responding to the clip, Captain Perry Scuderi said: “We have been telling anyone that would listen that we have a major shark problem in the Everglades and Islamorada. Hands in the water is a bad move after releasing a fish.”
While Captain Mike Venezia said: “I could show you a dozen places where there are packs of these lemon sharks lurking below. We can’t fish in those areas anymore because it’s so bad. Anywhere from the size of the one in this video to 250lbs plus.”
Claire Reid