Washington University Rowers Attacked by Flying Asian Carp

The rowers had no place to go during the surprise attack.

ByABC News via GMA logo
April 13, 2015, 11:14 AM

— -- Freshman rowers at Washington University in St. Louis had nowhere to go when they were caught in the crossfire of a herd of flying fish.

The surprise attack was captured on camera by varsity rower Benjamin Rosenbaum who called the incident that took place Friday with Asian carps “almost a rite of passage” for freshmen rowers.

“It happened the same weekend in April back in 2013,” Rosenbaum, a Washington University junior, told ABC News. "It’s the season.”

Rosenbaum, the captain of the university's Varsity men's crew team, was loading equipment onto a trailer with his teammates when he caught a first glimpse of the coming attack.

“I saw a few fish jump up,” Rosenbaum said. “I had an idea of what was about to happen so I walked down to the dock and filmed it.”

The fish kept jumping for around two minutes but Rosenbaum says there were no injuries. Everyone, he says , as able to laugh about it, eventually.

“The freshmen were panicking,” he said.