A sea lion used its mouth to pull a girl sitting on the edge of a pier into the water Saturday, according to shocking video footage.
The girl was feeding the sea lion bread crumbs near the water at the Steveston Fisherman’s Wharf in Richmond, British Columbia, in Canada when the sea lion grabbed her dress and pulled her underwater, the New York Post reported.
Michael Fujiwara, a Vancouver native who caught the incident on video, was in the right place at the right time when he started filming the incident.
“I was just sitting by the dock, and then this sea lion popped its head out of the water just in front of me. I just took out my cell phone and started filming,” Fujiwara said.
The video shows the sea lion bobbing its head up and down near the dock as onlookers watched.
A young girl decided to lean over the side of the dock to get a closer look when the animal jumped right up to her.
“It initially jumped up to the girl to read her I guess,” Fujiwara told the CBC.
Thinking that the animal was being playful, she giggled and sat closer to the edge of the dock.
Suddenly, the sea lion emerged from the water again. But this time, it grabbed the girl by the dress and pulled her underwater.
People in the area started to gasp and scream when a man, who is believed to be a relative, jumped into the water to rescue the girl, the Vancouver Sun reported.
The sea lion does not make another appearance as both the man and the girl emerged from the water completely drenched.