A fisherman in Tigbauan town, Province of Iloilo was struck dead by a needlefish referred to locally as “balo.”

The fisherman was identified as Rudy Tinasas, 59 years old.

He was with his son, Ronel, when the incident happened.

Ronel said his father was standing on their fishing boat when the needlefish jumped out of the water and hit Rudy, in the process, with its elongated narrow beak.

He said he noticed blood on his father’s abdomen, although it had not oozed out.

“Nakatayo si tatay, lumipad yung isda na ‘balo.’ Tinamaan si tatay. Sabi ko, ‘tay anong nangyari sa ‘yo, may sugat ka.’ Sabi niya, wala. Maya-maya pa, sumama ang pakiramdam nya. Hinawakan nya ang kanyang ulo at humandusay,” Ronel narrated.

Ronel maneuvered the boat back to the shore in Barangay Parara Norte in Tigbauan to have his father taken to the hospital but his father was pronounced dead on arrival.

Rudy left behind his wife, Rosella, and five children. Rosella shared her fond memories of Rudy who she said grew up among a family of fishers. 

"Hindi ko makakalimutan ang kasipagan niya. Hindi nya ako pinabayaan, mahal nya ako,” she said.

According to Irene Legaspi, associate researcher of the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center, she finds what happened to Rudy as extremely rare.

“Extremely rare. May mga needlefish na, there are reports, that they can easily rupture organs of humans like eyes, heart, intestines and lungs when it leaps out of the water pointing the needle in the potential threat,” Legaspi said.

At least 35 species of needlefish have been identified worlwide.

The needlefish has the ability to jump out of the water the way a dolphin does a “beach casting.”