A North Florida teen got a big surprise this past Saturday when he reeled in an 8-foot shark after the animal put up a 30-minute fight.
NBC affiliate WTLV reports that 15-year-old Noah Thrift works on a charter boat at the Fernandina Beach marina. After ending his shift and cleaning the boat, the teen tells WTLV that he likes to fish off the marina.
Earlier in the day, Thrift says he’d already caught a sting ray, and that his brother caught a 15-inch sea bass. Thrift was cleaning the boat and already had his line in the water when he noticed that the line was laid over – on the other end was a massive 8-foot shark.
Thrift tells WTLV that he fought to reel in the shark for about 30 minutes. Another boater noticed Thrift’s struggle, and rushed over to help. Together, they hauled the shark into the dock. Thrift says people began exiting nearby restaurants to catch a glimpse of what was going on.
After pictures and stares, Thrift said he put the shark back into the water and moved it from side to side. The shark eventually came back to life and disappeared back into the water.
