The Western mutant dived tens of meters deep, catching fish with his bare hands on the Vam Nao River: Anyone who saw it was startled and surprised.

The strange thing about catching fish with bare hands

Tran Van Hieu’s childhood (SN 1982) was spent following his father and catching fish. From a young age, he was familiar with the types of fish in the river, their paths and characteristics.

At the age of 19, Hieu got married and started to live on his own, he himself did not expect that he would be able to dive 8-10m deep in water. The Vam Nao river section has two banks, An Giang and Dong Thap provinces, where Mr. Hieu makes a daily living. Referring to the “mutant who catches fish with his bare hands”, no one in the area does not know.

With only a small snorkel about 30m long, a basket tied across his stomach, Hieu can dive underwater and bring back a basket full of paper fish, hundreds of kg of rice snails, giant freshwater prawns…

He shared: “In the water, I can’t see anything at all, it’s all thanks to my previous fishing experience and feelings. For example, shrimp, it has a habit of flipping back, spiky pegfish, fish. It has barbs, it’s easier to capture it underwater and it won’t cut your hands.In the old days, when people didn’t go fishing a lot, one day I found a hundred kilograms of rice snails. is the easiest time to catch.”

Rumors are far away, there are many people from other regions come just to watch Hieu and the spectacular chases on the riverbed. A group of friends came to visit, they rented a small raft to eat and drink. Hieu then said that they gathered coal to grill the food, they even laughed if the fish didn’t have it, what would it take to bake it, if they could catch it in time. Only 5-10 minutes later, he emerged with a bunch of snakehead fish, river shrimp… in the amazement of the onlookers.

During his career, Hieu could earn from several hundred thousand dong every day, all taking care of living expenses for his wife and two children. Many years ago, because life was too difficult, he went to Dong Nai to work as a worker, but a work accident caused him to lose a finger.

Returning to the river, shrimp, fish, Hieu was still sharp and agile. “That short finger didn’t stop me from catching fish in the river with my bare hands,” he said.

Turning point to quit the job

Every time she saw her husband rowing a canoe, taking a breathing line, a fish basket, etc., Hieu’s wife was flustered with fear. Even though he knew that for more than 20 years in the profession, Hieu knew by heart the times when the water was high, the water was low and the location of the fish mounds filled with fish in the riverbed.

Hieu’s wife bakes cakes to sell.

“People say my job is to sell my life to the ha ha. When the roof beams dry, I am hungry, when the roof beams are wet, I can eat. There are times when diving too deep, the oxygen tank suddenly turns off, I have to emerge immediately. As soon as I got ashore, my nose was bleeding profusely. My wife was very sad. Besides, the Vam Nao river is also a place for many boats to scratch clams and zap fish. I’m sure I won’t be able to guarantee it. Therefore, when the brothers in the area see where my boat is anchored, they stay away. I live and die, but because of my livelihood, I have to follow the profession,” Hieu said.

A few years ago, a benefactor watched a video of Mr. Hieu catching fish in the riverbed. Feeling sad, they contacted him to help with home repair costs, but in return, they wanted Hieu to quit his job.

Mr. Hieu next to the current house.

“They said that my job is too dangerous, I have a wife and children at home. Besides, they don’t want me to continue killing. I think that’s also true, so I decided to quit my job to fix the house, and then applied for a place. other to work as a welder,” he said.

Now, “fisherman” Tran Van Hieu no longer dives in the rivers. His wife has another job of making filter cakes to sell. “My heart is no longer anxious and anxious,” Hieu’s wife said with a smile.

According to Young Intellectuals