Two Connecticut fishermen reeled in a massive 700-pound Thresher shark that could be the largest ever caught in state waters, according to a report.
Ed Lovely, 46, spent over six hours wrestling the powerful predator alongside a friend off the coast of Stonington last Wednesday, ABC News reported.
Once out on the water, Lovely strung out a fishing line and recalled thinking, “Bang, I feel something,” as the hefty fish began pulling, he told the outlet.
“We started fighting from there,” he said.
Lovely worked for over six hours into the night with his fishing partner to reel in the 16.5-foot, 700-pound shark, which was longer than his entire boat, he recalled.
At one point, he was in complete “awe” over the shark’s mammoth head peeking out of the waters.
“Wow, holy mackerel, look at that shark, it is the biggest shark I’ve ever seen,” Lovely remembered thinking at the time.
Once they completed the harrowing catch, the pair of grown fishermen “laid on the deck and started laughing like kids, just laying there in the dark with headlamps on,” he said.
Since the shark was too big for Lovely’s boat, it had to be rigged to the side of the boat — then towed away in a trailer once reaching land, the outlet reported.
Lovely is currently in talks with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to see if the catch will break a Connecticut state record.
A spokesperson for the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection also confirmed to the outlet that the triumph may qualify for a Marine Trophy Fish Award.
Thresher sharks can be up to 20 feet long, according to the NOAA.
Lovely’s family has since cut up the shark’s meat to be shared with family and friends, his wife, Cynthia, told the outlet.
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