Man Reveals What It Felt Like Being Swallowed By Whale and How He Survived

A terrifying thing happened to a Chilean kayaker, Adrian Simancas, when a humpback whale swallowed him. Thankfully Adrian survived the incident unharmed, but the video record made by his father still makes us chill.

Swallowed by a whale

24-year-old Chilean kayaker, Adrian Simancas, was on an excursion with his father, Dell, in Patagonia, Southern Chile, when a whale swallowed him and his kayak. A few moments later, the whale released him and Adrian came to the surface. His father, who recorded the incident with his camera, shouted “Relax” to his son and urged him to grab his boat.

“I thought I was dead.”

“I saw something blue and white passing close to my face, like on one side and on top, but I didn’t understand what was happening. The next minute I sank. I thought I had been eaten,” said Adrian after his experience. Soon he felt his life vest pull him up, and then two seconds later he was back on the surface.

But Adrian was still worried he could perish in the freezing waters, “When I came up and started floating, I was scared that something might happen to my father too, that we wouldn’t reach the shore in time, or that I would get hypothermia.”

His father recorded everything.

Adrian’s dad, Dell told CNN en Español he began recording when he noticed “pretty waves that seemed exciting.” He then heard “what sounds like a strong wave hitting behind me and when I turn around, I don’t see Adrian or his pack raft, so I got worried, and around three seconds later I see he’s shot up to the surface and the pack raft after him.”

As Adrian paddled towards him while the whale disappeared from view, Dell continued to urge him, “Stay calm, grab my rope, grab my rope, if we head for the shore everything will be fine.”

A very rare accident

Experts described the chances of being swallowed by a whale as “1-in-1 trillion”. Humpback whales can grow to as long as 50ft and weigh about 36 tons. They feed in polar waters and migrate to tropical or subtropical waters to breed and give birth. Their diet consists mostly of krill and small fish, and they usually use bubbles to catch prey.

Wildlife scientist Vanessa Pirotta said the humpback whale was likely lunge-feeding on krill or fish at the time, and the kayaker was in its way. “These animals are not targeting human-sized prey. They don’t have the equipment to do what they need to do in order to devour a human,” she said, pointing to their narrow esophagus and lack of teeth.

Luckily Adrian’s meeting the whale had a happy ending just like the story of an Australian sailor, who was rescued along with his dog after spending three months at sea.