A Donegal fisherman has told how he was dragged into the sea when a shark capsized his boat using pure brute strength.
Moville man Graham Smith was plunged into the water when his kayak overturned battling a porbeagle shark.
He had been battling the shark for 20 minutes in the sea off Donegal before ending up in the water.
The shark had pulled him out into choppy water during the angling battle, prompting Graham to call for help from friends on a nearby boat.
In dramatic footage of the confrontation the shark can be seen chasing Ray’s bait.
Graham fights for control of his fishing rod as the shark drags the line behind him and over his shoulder.
When the angler starts to be towed towards shore, the shark drags the rod into the side of the boat, tilting the kayak.
“I go fishing for shark a couple of times a year off Donegal in Ireland,” the 43-year-old told the Mirror.
“On that particular day, it was calm inside the headland but once you got outside it was rough.
“The porbeagle is a very clever shark. They’re notoriously difficult. About 15 to 20 minutes I’d been fighting him.”
He continued: “Towards the end of the fight, he took me out where it was very bad.
“Some lads that I know were there so I gave them a shout and said can you give me a quick tow out of this rough stuff – then I can get the shark up and let him go.
“But the shark caused a swell before we were ready and it just flipped the kayak.”
Graham’s kit box was flipped over casting its contents into the sea, losing him €500 worth of gear.
Graham said a GoFish camera, a GoPro and his Huawei P30 mobile were among the items lost or destroyed.
“It’s only happened twice now in 13 or 14 years of kayak fishing,” he said.
“Another 15 minutes and I’d have had him up and let him go. It’s one of those things, unfortunately.
“I cut the line. I had to go home, I had to go to work.”
Graham was able to flip his boat back over with some help from the crew who were towing him.
The porbeagle shark grows to 2.5metres and is found primarily in the north Atlantic.