Terrifying encounter: kayaker briefly swallowed by whale

A kayaker had a terrifying close call off the coast of southern Chile when a humpback whale briefly scooped him up in its mouth before spitting him out unharmed.

A dramatic encounter off the coast of southern Chile left kayaker Adrian Simancas shaken but unharmed after a humpback whale briefly scooped him up in its mouth before spitting him out. The incident, caught on camera near Punta Arenas, shows the whale suddenly surfacing and lifting Simancas out of the water. Simancas described the terrifying moment: "I felt like I was being lifted, but it was clearly too strong to be a wave, and when I turned, I felt something blue and white passing close to my face, like on one side and above. I didn't understand what was happening. Then everything... I went under and thought I had been swallowed," he said.

His father, who was in another kayak nearby, captured the shocking scene on video. The footage shows the whale briefly enclosing Simancas in its mouth before releasing him seconds later. Reflecting on the experience, Simancas admitted he feared for his life: "I thought I was done for, that I was dead. It was like three strange seconds down there, and now, looking back, I reflect on what mistakes led me there," he recalled.

Despite the terrifying encounter, Simancas escaped without injury. Experts believe the whale likely mistook him for food before realizing its mistake.