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Jakarta Post

When sailing Buton waters, beware of flying needlefish

A 16-year-old was impaled in the neck by a flying needlefish.

Andi Hajramurni (The Jakarta Post)
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Makassar
Sat, January 25, 2020

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When sailing Buton waters, beware of flying needlefish The jaw of the needlefish that impaled the neck of a 16-year-old is shown after surgery to remove it at a hospital in Makassar, Southeast Sulawesi, on Jan. 20. (Kompas.com/-)

W

hile out fishing on Saturday night in waters just 5 kilometers from his home in Wakinamboro village, South Buton, Southeast Sulawesi, 16-year-old Muhammad Idul was impaled in the neck by a needlefish.

Living in the village on Siompu Island, Muhammad and his school friend Sardi are used to night fishing. Each of them was sailing a small boat, and they were already 500 meters away from the coast when the unexpected happened. 

“Sardi sailed in front of me. He didn’t know that I was right behind him, so he turned on a flashlight. A needlefish immediately jumped in my direction right after he turned on the flashlight, and its jaw pierced the left side of my neck,” Idul told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

After being impaled in the neck, he fell into the water and was forced a few meters away from his boat because the fish kept on moving. Idul wanted to remove the fish immediately, but Sardi said he was not bleeding. 

“I hesitated to take it out because I was scared it would cause bleeding,” Idul said. 

They swam to the shore because Idul could not get on his boat. Sardi helped him as Idul had to keep hold of the fish with one hand. Once they arrived on land, Sardi and Idul’s other schoolmates took him home. He wrapped the fish on his head until he arrived home. 

When Idul’s father Saharuddin opened the door, he saw his son holding the fish to his head. 

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