THIS is the dramatic moment a swimmer whacked a “shark” with a mop to chase it away from a beach in Turkey.
The creature was filmed swimming towards a beach full of kids in the popular tourist destination of Marmaris.
Swimmers feared it was a shark as a dark fin can be seen poking out as it circles around locals and tourists standing in the shallow waters.
Others in the background can be seen pointing in horror, while some dive into the water while the creature swirls around their feet.
But one brave swimmer approaches the “shark” and starts smacking it on the head with a mop to scare it away.
He bonks it on the head a few times, as the man filming can be heard chuckling.
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After a few swipes, the creature appears to swim off in the other direction away from the crowds as a group of swimmers stay put to make sure it’s leaving.
But authorities in Marmaris later confirmed it was not a shark – and poked fun at the man swimming in the ocean with a mop.
They said: “The fish seen on the public beach and thought to be a shark was a Mediterranean Garfish.
“According to experts, it is a harmless animal. That’s why you don’t need to take a mop with you when you go into the sea.”
Although it wasn’t a shark on this occasion, the Mediterranean sea is said to be home to 47 different shark species – including the blue shark, great hammerhead and Great White shark.
It comes after several beaches were shut on Egypt‘s Red Sea coast after two women – one Austrian and one Romanian – were killed in separate shark attacks within 600 metres of each other.
A 68-year-old woman from the Tyrol region of Austria – who was on holiday in Egypt, died on Friday after losing an arm and a leg in an attack while swimming in the sea.
Elizabeth Sauer told her husband she was just going back into the water “for a moment” just before the fatal incident.
Egyptian authorities said a Mako shark was responsible for her death.
And on Sunday, a Romanian woman was found dead after she was attacked as well.
Both incidents took place off the coast of Sahl Hasheesh near the city of Hurghada, approximately 60 miles southwest of the popular resort of Sharm El Sheikh.
An expert said the two women could have been killed by the same animal amid fears overfishing and “shark feeding” experiences for tourists are driving the predators to the shores.
Shark attacks are incredibly rare in the Red Sea, with no more than a handful every couple of years.
But in 2010, five people were attacked in the space of as many days in Sharm El Sheikh, with a 71-year-old German woman dying from her injuries.
Speaking to The Sun Online, Dr Lucy Hawkes from the University of Exeter warned it is possible both of the fatal attacks of the weekend were carried out by the same shark.
Dr Hawkes, a Senior Lecturer in Physiological Ecology who has travelled to the Red Sea to tag sharks for conservation purposes, said human actions are decimating the shark population while driving them further in search of food.
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Sam Purkis, chair of the Department of Marine Geosciences at the University of Miami, also said the dumping of animal carcases in the Red Sea by passing cargo ships might have caused two sharks to surface at the same time.
“That leads sharks to the surface to scavenge, bringing them into contact with swimmers,” he explained.
