Noe Campos, a catch-and-release fisherman, was with his friends fishing sharks in
the Gulf of Mexico, when they experienced a once-in-a-lifetime moment. What the men initially thought to be a moment of celebration as they caught the biggest fish ever, actually turned into a lifesaving rescue!
The fishermen, from Venice, Florida, quickly realized the 12-foot hammerhead shark they caught is seriously injured and rushed to help her, but then they noticed the female is pregnant and ready to give birth. So they immediately went from fishermen to doctors and jumped in the water to help the shark to deliver her babies.
It took nearly two hours of great efforts, but in the end over 20 pups were safely delivered. “I stood in the water for a couple of seconds to make sure they swam off good,” Campos said. “I held them and as soon as I put them out, voom! They took off.”
As is turned out, the massive hammerhead shark had a huge bite on her belly, as a result of a fight with another shark, so her babies were in danger. But the kind fishermen stepped up and saved them all. Sadly, the mother passed away due to her injury, but all least all her pups have made it!
“It was life-changing,” Ashley Travis, one of the fishermen told Newsday during a phone interview. “I’ve never seen anything giving birth before.”
The incredible scene was caught on video by locals and shared online. You can watch the moment in the video below!