A 24-year-old boater was quickly swallowed by a humpback whale in southern Chile before unharmed. The event, captured on video, happened near the San Isidro Lighthouse in the Strait of Magellan. Adrián Simancas was kayaking with his parents, Dell, when the whale immediately surfaced and engulfed him along with his yacht.
In the popular videos, Dell Simancas may be heard shouting” Rest! Relax”! as his brother disappeared into the whale’s teeth. Five hours afterward, Adrián bobbed back to the surface, startled but safe.
” I thought it had swallowed me,” Adrián said in a statement released by AFP, describing the pain of a nasty texture and darker blue and white colors surrounding him before he sank. ” At that moment, I thought I was going to die”.
When his father turned about and couldn’t see Adrián or his paddle, he feared the worst. Because I didn’t see him for about three hours, that was the only real concern I ever had. And immediately he shot out”, Dell told TVN Chile.
Researchers explain what happened
According to aquatic biologists, the whale was most likely engaged in lunge-feeding, a conduct where it lunges toward the area while keeping its mouth wide open to catch fish or krill. ” It seems that the yacht was straight in the whale’s feeding patch”, said Maria Jose Perez of the University of Chile, as per AFP.
According to wildlife scholar Vanessa Pirotta, humpback whales have small throats, making it physically impossible for them to eat a person, and do not consciously target people.
The Strait of Magellan is a major visitor draw because of its diverse marine life, including animals and sharks. However, its frigid waters pose a survival risk, with temperatures as low as 39°F ( 4°C ) even in summer.
Despite the dreadful knowledge, Adrián and Dell remain excited about the sea. When asked if they would go kayaking suddenly, they answered in tandem,” Of program”.
