South Africa: he was swallowed by a whale and lived

A diver participated in the shooting of a documentary. "We had no time to fear," he said of the unusual accident.

The director of Dive Expert Tours, Rainer Schimpf (51), accompanied his team of divers at an event to document the migration of sardines, which takes place in South Africa from May to July.

The team of divers was in the waters south of Cape Town and was divided into two groups. Suddenly, during the recordings, the sea began to shake and Schimpf was literally swallowed by Bryde's whale. Then the animal spit on him and managed to escape unscathed.

After the incident, he explained to Barcroft TV that he was trying to record a shark when everything went black and that he felt that the great whale was seizing his body. "I could feel the pressure on my hip, at that time there was no time to worry, you had to use your instinct," he said.

"I held my breath because I thought I should dive and get rid of the depths of the whales," continued the expert. Schimpf has been in the industry for over 15 years and has never experienced such a situation. His partner and photographer Heinz Toperczer kept the camera focused on him and was able to capture the exact moment.

Incredible moment when a diver is spit out by a WHALE after being sucked in by https://t.co/l9XXapeCSZ pic.twitter.com/A2aI0IrExF

– Siglov Freudivan (@DerangedRadio) March 8, 2019

Fortunately, the whale released the diver and was able to return to his boat unharmed. Bryde's whales are usually about 15 meters long and are found in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans.

Source: The Vanguardia