A group of beachgoers in Pensacola, Fla., recently helped get a beached shark into the Gulf, according to video circulating on social media.
Kaitlin Wright, a meteorologist in Charlotte, N.C., shared the video Thursday.
“WOW! GREAT WORK! This Longfin Mako shark beached itself this afternoon on Pensacola Beach. Beachgoers got it back in the Gulf,” she said.
In the footage, the fish can first be seen laying on its belly in the sand, while shallow water around it didn’t quite reach its head. Two men can then be seen dragging it by its back fin as the shallow water swirled around it.
As the men tried to pull it, the shark started twisting around and slamming its tail into the sand. It then landed on its side, and one of the men again tried to pull it back into the water. They kept pulling, even as the shark continued to writhe.
Eventually, they were able to get its nose pointed in the right direction, back into the ocean. One of the men kept ahold of its tail to make sure it steered away from the shore before it successfully swam off.
“Named for its decidedly long and rounded pectoral fins, little is known about the life and habits of this slender relative of the shortfin mako and white shark,” said the University of Florida of the species of fish that washed up in Pensacola.
Earlier this year, WWL reported on another shark on the Florida shore. That incident, in Panama City Beach was not quite as heartwarming. One man could even be seen riding it like a cowboy.
This summer, beachgoers in Florida also witnessed a group of hammerhead sharks and a pregnant shark was found on an Alabama beach. This week, there was also one other sweet shark tale, about a couple who saved a baby shark that got stuck in a glove.