A Welsh man was vacationing on the Sunshine Coast, Australia, when he ended up wrestling a shark in order to protect a group of children.

Paul Marshallsea was enjoying a cook out with his family when he heard someone yell “shark.” He reacted immediately, running toward the shoreline to see what was going on. The 62-year-old man spotted the shark and instinctively reacted to protect children who were swimming nearby. Marshallsea was quoted by BBC, describing the incident:

“Where this shark actually came ashore, it is shallow for about five or six yards, and a lot of babies and toddlers splash about there – it could have been very nasty. My instincts took over and I just grabbed the shark by the tail. I know it was dangerous but it almost looked beautiful – you have got to have respect for a beautiful animal.”

The shark was eventually led out to deeper waters and away from the beach using helicopters and flotation devices.

Marshallsea, a former coal merchant, was in Australia on holiday with his wife, daughter and some friends. He never expected that the relaxing day would lead to a wrestling match with a six-foot-long shark.

Although Australian coastguards do not recommend wrestling with sharks, they admit that Marshallsea’s actions could have saved lives. The “dusky shark,” as reported by Wikipedia, can be dangerous to humans. As of 2009 there have been six reports of dusky shark attacks. Three of the attacks were reported as unprovoked, and one ended in a fatality.

As reported by thissouthwales.com, an Australian TV crew was on location and captured the man wrestling the shark on film.