13 February 2023 , 15:50
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A diver has recounted the horror of being attacked by a "cunning" shark and says he and his friend are thankful to still be in one piece after he kicked the fish in the face.
Tao Hoogland was diving with his friend Joseph at Shark Bay, Western Australia, on Friday when suddenly they were just inches away from a hungry, aggressive shark.
The free-diving instructor had caught lobsters and some fish, but was eager for more and continued on his hunt for a couple of hours.
As soon as he entered into a "rest position," in a bid to get the perfect catch, he noticed an unwelcome guest nearing him.
He shared the "shocking" experience on TikTok, in a video which has racked up over 840,000 views and 19,200 likes, in hope of raising awareness about the dangers of deep-sea fishing.
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Tao Hoogland says he is lucky to still be in one piece (Jam Press/@taos_oceanadventure)
A video grab of Tao being only a few inches away from a hungry, aggressive shark (Jam Press Vid/@taos_oceanadventure)Mr Hoogland said: "[I noticed] a large bronze whaler shark swims directly in front of me. There wasn't fear, it was more surprise, shock and our fight-or-flight survival instincts kicking in.
"As I looked up to my dive buddy, he signalled that it was time to go, especially as we had several bad encounters with similar sharks the week prior.
"Suddenly, the shark reappeared behind me and before I knew what was happening, it was attaching my buddy in between our legs, trying to take the fish off his speargun.
"It bit one of the fish off, then another started floating away, so I tried to grab it – but then it came straight back and took the second fish from directly in front of me.
The popular TikTok video (Jam Press Vid/@taos_oceanadventure)
'There wasn't fear, it was more surprise, shock' (Jam Press Vid/@taos_oceanadventure)"The shark tried to take the rest of the fish out of our hands, as we swam back to shore.
"I was surprised by how aggressive and cunning the shark was, but I quickly became annoyed as it wouldn't leave us alone."
In the clip, the shark can be seen darting toward him, as he attempts to battle it off with a swift kick to the face.
Although the shark keeps returning for more, the clip soon ends with one final attempt to stop Tao in his tracks.
Users were commenting in shock at the ordeal.
One said: "Omg my heart would have stopped I wouldn’t be able to move after that let alone swim back to shore."
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'The shark tried to take the rest of the fish out of our hands' (Jam Press/@taos_oceanadventure)Jonah said: “My soul would leave my body…I cannot with sharks I love them but it would be very painful to be killed by them”
Others, however, suggested he was too rough with the aquatic mammal and should have gone a different way about the situation.
Ness commented: “You forgot to put your hand on the shark's nose, that’s why.”
“Don’t splash like crazy, let him get close then push down on his head to steer him away,” commented Joe.
However, Katie said: “All these people saying just don't splash… as if they wouldn't panic too,” followed by a laughing emoji.
Tao added: "Shark encounters are not uncommon for us, so we've had lots of experience with them in the past.
"We knew our main priority was to stay close, keep eye contact while holding our fish above the water and swimming towards shore for safety, as we protected ourselves with our spears.
"We've never encountered such a funny shark that was willing to [steal from us] – usually they keep their distance, but not this one.
"After the encounter, we were both in shock and stood on the beach surprised that neither of us had lost a limb or was badly bitten."