‘Is that a SHARK in the Thames?’ Stunned bystanders capture photos of giant ‘fin’ sticking out of the river near the London Eye (or is it just driftwood?)
- Witnesses photographed what appeared to be a grey fin in the River Thames
- A fin-shaped object was spotted in the murky waters by the London Eye
- Witnesses said it was a shark, but port authorities said it was likely just driftwood
The brutal world of Westminster politics is often likened to shark-infested waters.
And this afternoon drop-jawed onlookers were convinced they had spotted a real one in the River Thames gliding past the Houses of Parliament.
Witnesses photographed what appeared to be a grey fin carving through the murky waters by the London Eye.
On closer inspection, the shadowy outline of a sea creature can seemingly be seen beneath the surface.
This afternoon drop-jawed onlookers were convinced they had spotted a shark in the River Thames gliding past the Houses of Parliament
Witnesses photographed what appeared to be a grey fin carving through the murky waters by the London Eye
On closer inspection, the shadowy outline of a sea creature can seemingly be seen beneath the surface
Excited bystanders took to social media to boast about glimpsing the rarest of sightings.
One witness, Yasmin Dan, tweeted: ‘Walked through central today and looked in the river.. is that a shark in the Thames??!’
One Twitter user responded: ‘Wow you can clearly see its fin #riverthamesshark.’
Another witness, Adam Barnett, tweeted: ‘Err! Is that what I think it is, a shark in the Thames.’
Steve Davis replied: ‘I have just seen what I thought was a shark and my mate didn’t believe me!!!! WHAT IS HAPPENING?!’
Yasmin Dan tweeted: ‘Walked through central today and looked in the river.. is that a shark in the Thames??!’
One social media user posted an image of the mysterious object saying: ‘Call me crazy but I’m 100% sure this was a moving fin’
Excited bystanders took to social media to boast about glimpsing the rarest of sightings
Twitter user Ellis Marsh said: ‘It’s the whale all over again!!’
But port authorities said it was most likely just driftwood.
One social media user posted an image of the mysterious object saying: ‘Call me crazy but I’m 100% sure this was a moving fin.’
The Port of London authority could not confirm what the object was but did not rule out the possibility of it being a sea creature.
A statement read: ‘The two photos we have seen are not very clear. The dark object could well be a piece of debris or driftwood.
‘None of our teams have reported an animal in the river today. However we cannot give a definitive view either way from that photo. If anyone spots anything similar do please let us know!
‘A shark is however very unlikely – though species like the dog fish and smooth hound have been seen further out in the Thames Estuary.
‘However, if it is the dorsal fin of an animal, it is more likely to be that of a small cetacean such as a harbour porpoise. These are not uncommon in the Thames and have been spotted in central London on many occasions’.