It looks like a scene from “Jaws,” but it’s just teenager Caroline Winch going absolutely hysterical as a manatee approaches while she swims in the water in Florida.
Winch was vacationing in Florida with her girlfriends when she found herself alone in the lake with a manatee nearby. Video captured by Winch using a GoPro camera was posted to YouTube and has since gone viral.
Winch told Inside Edition that the manatee was “really big” and started to think she might be in serious danger.
“I was thinking it had teeth and I was starting to think it’s a shark’s cousin, it could hurt me,” she said. “I could die out here, my mom would not see me again, I was very nervous.”
But anyone who is familiar with manatees know that they are virtually harmless, herbivorous mammals. They are also endangered.
A video posted by YouTube user Katie Gingrich shows a friend absolutely losing her mind when a manatee approaches during a swim. Be careful out there, guys — they can smell fear. (April 9, 2015) Youtube: Katie Gingrich
Winch is heard screaming “get me out of here” and then later saying “I’m going to touch it,” as the manatee swims within reach. She then lets out another scream saying “oh my God it’s huge.”
You can watch it all unfold in the video above.