A man fishing in Everglades National Park was given quite the scare when a shark bit him while he was washing his hands off the side of a boat, the National Park Service shared.
The man, who reported the shark attack to officials on Friday morning, was treated by a park ranger who shared that the injury “was consistent with a shark bite,” according to a statement shared with ABC News from an official with Everglades and Dry Tortugas National Parks.
“The individual stated he had been fishing from a boat in Florida Bay and was washing his hands in the water when the bite occurred,” the statement said.
The bite was caught on camera and shared with the National Parks Service. The official shared that it showed the shark leaping out of the water to bite the fisherman’s hand before pulling the man into the water as those on the boat rushed to get him out of the murky Everglades.
It has since been shared on social media, garnering millions of views on multiple platforms.
“I wouldn’t stick your hands in there,” one of the men on the boat could be heard saying in the video as the man who was bitten washed his hands off.
“Two seconds won’t do anything,” he responded before being pulled into the water.
Park officials shared that shark attacks in Everglades National Park are “extremely uncommon.”
The Miami-Dade Fire and Rescue transferred the man to a local hospital, and he was treated for his injuries.
Officials aren’t sure exactly what type of shark was responsible for the incident. However, Allyson Gantt, the chief of communications and public affairs for Everglades and Dry Tortugas National Parks, said it was most likely a bull shark.
“While shark bites are extremely uncommon in Everglades National Park, we always recommend visitors take caution around park wildlife,” the statement noted.
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