DESTIN, Fla. -- It was just another day on the water for a Florida charter boat captain when he noticed something falling from a nearby bridge.

At first, Capt. Jordan Smith, 35, thought it was an otter. But he realized the animal was a cat as it struggled to survive in the water, CBS affiliate WTVY-TV reports.

Smith used a net to pull the feline out of the water. The cat proceeded to grab hold of his arm all the way back to shore.

He drove it to a local veterinarian and now plans to welcome the feline into his home -- and family.

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"When I took it out of the net, it grabbed a hold of my arm. I held the cat all the way into the HarborWalk. It was pretty intense," he told the Panama City News Herald.

Smith said he's planning on naming the cat "Miracle."