The man who was swallowed up by a whale has revealed what his 'final' thoughts were.
Lobster diver Michael Packard found himself inside the mouth of a humpback whale on Friday 11 June, but somehow ended up being spat out and swimming to safety.
Advert
His incredible story hit headlines across the world and he's now taken part in a Reddit Ask Me Anything where he happily responded to all sorts of questions.
One person asked: "What was your 'last thought' when you realised you'd been eaten by a whale?"
To which Packard replied: "My wife and kids."
Opening up about the horrifying experience, Packard said: "[I was] trapped for about 30-40 seconds. Yes, I was almost convinced I was going to die that day."
Advert
Responding to a question about what he feared could have happened to him while inside the whale, he wrote: "I could've suffocated, or drowned if I didn't retrieve my regulator in time."
Thankfully, the whale spat Packard out before swimming off.
Once safely on dry land, the 57-year-old went to hospital, where, as you can probably imagine, he got a bit of a response from medics.
Advert
"I said, 'I got stuck in a whale's mouth'," he said.
"All the nurses and doctors at the hospital came to see me and ask me about it.
"One nurse came in with a notepad, she asked me for lottery numbers!"
Advert
And I can't say I blame her, because as well as surviving his recent Jonah-style encounter, the diver also managed to survive a plane crash in Costa Rica in 2001.
Packard was onboard a flight from San José to Puerto Jimenez that crashed, killing three people.
However, he managed to survive the crash but sustained 'severe facial injuries and multiple broken long bones in his arms and legs', according to a report in the Cape Cod Times in 2001.
He and four others passengers survived two nights in the Costa Rican jungle before being found by rescuers.
A doctor who treated the survivors told the Associated Press: "They would not have survived another night at that site."
Advert
Somewhat miraculously, Packard didn't sustain any serious injuries during the whale incident, telling Reddit he was left with 'soft tissue damage, nothing serious'.
Meanwhile, his son Jacob revealed how he found out about his dad's close shave. He said: "I got pulled out of Spanish class and got told there was an accident, whale related. Went the rest of the day without further knowledge. Really nerve wracking."
Jacob also said his dad had no plans for a change of career following the incident, saying lobster diving is Michael's 'life and passion'.
Featured Image Credit: Packard familyTopics: Interesting, US News