“Shark in the water!” And it was a big one. A 13-foot hammerhead shark was caught off the coast of North Carolina on North Topsail Beach. Pretty crazy considering that’s an area I visit frequently! The shark was caught by a Paramedic from Caldwell County, NC Blake Cochran. Cochran is an avid fisherman who says he and his friends travel monthly to fish along the coast, hunting for red drums and sharks.

He told WRAL that “It’s almost like catfishing from the beach. It’s kind of like what it is. You sit and wait after you take your bait out. And all of a sudden that reel started screaming. It was like being hooked to a car.” He says once he saw the fish’s dorsal fin he knew he had a hammerhead. But he had no idea it was as large it is, 13 feet 6 inches. Previously the largest shark Cochran had caught was 4 feet. This crushed that record!

After taking a quick photo to document his catch, he and his group released the 13-foot hammerhead shark back into the North Carolina waters.

He posed for a quick photo, then the group worked quickly to get the big fish back out into the water.

Source WRAL

Must Do’s For A Weekend In Topsail NC

Gallery: What To Do If You Encounter A Shark

• 3. Put up your guns baby and start fighting!

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  If you have a surfboard with your or boogie board hit it! And don't feel bad, you hit that shark HARD! Use objects like your hands and jab the shark's nose, gills and eyes.

• 2. Maintain full eye contact

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  If a shark starts to circle you to bumps you...it will 100% attack you. Keep your eye on it if you can.

• 1. Don’t play dead

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  This 100% works for sharks when you in the North Carolina mountains, but is a big NO for when you see a shark.