It’s always good to see everyone come together for the betterment of Mother Nature.
Beachgoers in Cape Cod, Massachusetts sprung into action when a 7-foot long Great White Shark stranded itself on the beach. Witnesses to the scene said that the shark got stuck on the sandbar after trying to catch seagulls close to the shore.
Great Whites are known to grow up to 20 feet in length and over 6,000 pounds as full grown adults, so it’s safe to assume that this shark is lacking in maturity and might be on the younger side.
When the tides receded, the shark was left to die on the sand, but not before some good Samaritans jumped into action to save the young sea creature.
Sharks can only breathe a few minutes out of the water, so those at the beach began to douse the shark with buckets of water in order for it to survive until help could arrive. A bystander called a local official who could be trusted with dragging the shark safely back into the ocean, but those already there had to act fast until help could arrive.
In the video, you can see that the buckets of water splashed onto the creature help for it to breathe and last until it returns to the sea. It wallows and flips around in the small amount of water around it, but it is evident that its survival depends on returning back to the water as quickly as possible.
As it flops around, the shark reveals its menacing teeth that they use to tear apart their prey. Great Whites have around 300 incredibly sharp teeth that are arranged in seven rows, easily allowing them to “leave a mark” on their food (and in the boat in the 1975 horror film Jaws).
After a long period of time tossing buckets of water on the beached fish, officials arrived with a watercraft so that they could pull the Great White back into the water. A man can be seen tying a rope around the shark’s tail, with the rope being connected to the small boat just off the shore.
Once the knot is tied by the official on land, he gives the signal to the harbormaster to begin dragging the shark back out. Those on the beach cheer as their hard work (and willingness to look out for one of Mother Nature’s creatures) was rewarded.
The person driving the boat guides the Great White back out to sea before releasing it to live on its own once again, and the shark lives to see and bite another day.
It will probably be a little more careful getting that close to shore again…
Watch the footage of the exciting shark rescue below:
