A fisherman was swallowed whole by one of the world’s most powerful tidal bores and lived to tell the tale after being hurled off a stone groyne at speeds of up to 8 meters per second.
The dramatic rescue-free escape unfolded on Friday afternoon on the south bank of China’s Qiantang River, just east of the Jiashao Bridge in Zhejiang province. Video shows the man standing calmly on the exposed concrete pier with his chair and fishing gear as the towering, muddy surge, known locally as the “Silver Dragon”, races toward him.
Seconds later the wall of water crashes over the structure, instantly knocking him into the raging current. Rescuers say being swept off these stone groynes is almost always fatal. The force can reach three to seven tonnes per square metre, the water is thick with sediment that chokes victims, and jagged rocks lie just below the surface. Experts describe the rescue window as mere seconds.
Yet this angler, described by witnesses as a strong swimmer, somehow fought the surging flow and made it back to the rocky shallows under his own power. Local hydrological experts and members of the Seal Rescue Team called the survival an “extremely low-probability event.” They noted that previous similar incidents have almost never ended with a successful rescue – by drone, boat or foot.
The Qiantang bore is famous for reaching heights of several metres and travelling at speeds that can outrun a person. The stretch near the Jiashao Bridge is a popular but unofficial viewing and fishing spot where people regularly climb over embankments to get closer to the action. Authorities and rescue teams repeatedly warn that the combination of fast-moving water, hidden rocks and zero reaction time turns the location into a death trap.
“Do not take chances,” rescuers said. “Once you are taken by the tide from the groyne, there is almost no chance of being saved. Respect the water and stay behind the barriers.”
The unnamed man is reported to have climbed ashore unaided after the ordeal. His survival is being described as a near-miracle against one of nature’s most relentless and least forgiving spectacles.
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