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Man's heart stops after fish jumps into his mouth

Dover sole. Historical Picture Archive/Corbis via Getty Images

This is no fish tale.

A British man's heart stopped after he accidentally swallowed a 5½-inch long Dover sole during a fishing trip in southern England, the Daily Echo reported.

The 28-year-old, who was not named, went into cardiac arrest during a fishing trip in Boscombe on Oct. 5 after the fish jumped in his mouth, blocking his throat, the Daily Echo reported. Paramedics were able to clear his airway with forceps.

“I have never attended a more bizarre incident and don’t think I ever will,” said MIke Harrison, an emergency responder for the South Western Ambulance service.

“Initially, we didn’t know the true extent of the situation or what the patient was choking on, but as we questioned them further we were told he had a whole fish stuck in his windpipe,” said Martyn Box, another paramedic at the scene.

When paramedics arrived, a friend of the man already was performing CPR, the Daily Echo reported. The friend, who also was not identified, told Harrison that the victim had jokingly placed a fish he had just caught over his mouth. The Dover sole then wiggled free and fell into the man’s mouth and blocked his windpipe, the Daily Echo reported.

The man’s heart had already stopped, so paramedics continued CPR.

Extracting the fish was difficult because its barbs and gills were getting stuck in the man’s throat, the Daily Echo reported.

After six attempts, paramedics succeeded. The man was taken to a hospital and was able to respond to questions, the Daily Echo reported, adding that he has made a full recovery.