A fisherman caught a giant catfish in the River Maas in Maaseik (Limburg) on Tuesday. The fish measures about 2 metres and is estimated to weigh 70 kilograms. It was quite a job to hoist it on board a dinghy, says harbourmaster Rik Schroyen: "A group of friends fought for half an hour to land the fish."
Together with a group of friends the harbourmaster of Heerenlaak Rik Schroyen helped a fisherman to haul a giant catfish on board in Maaseik on Tuesday night.
"We saw the fisherman in his dinghy bobbing on the Maas," Schroyen told VRT. "He was bent over holding on to his fishing line with all his might. It was clear he had a bite from a big fish." When the fisher called for help, the group of friends immediately set to work. "We put our boat next to his and then stepped over to his," says Schroyen.
Together, the men were able to haul in the fish. "Alone he would never have succeeded. After half an hour of pulling and tugging, the fish was finally exhausted. The fisherman put his hand in the catfish's mouth and pulled it on board. I pulled it by its fins."
2 metres, 70 kilograms
Immediately it became clear that the fishermen were dealing with a gigantic beast. "I have never seen anything like it myself," says Schroyen. "We measured it immediately. It measured 1 metre 90, but if we had been able to stretch it out it would have been about 2 metres."
The harbour master estimates that the fish weighed about 70 kilograms.
"The fisher was immensely proud of his catch. That is why we took photos and videos for posterity," says a grinning Schroyen.
After the photo session, the group of friends removed the hook from the catfish's mouth and the fish was thrown back into the water and is now again happily swimming around in the River Maas.
