Fisherman Rescued From Sandbar Surrounded by Sharks, Officials Say

— -- A Florida fisherman had to be rescued this week after finding himself trapped on a sandbar in open water and surrounded by sharks, according to the Boca Grande Fire Department.

Steve Moon, 24, went wade fishing Wednesday on a beach in Burnt Store Marina in southwestern Florida, said Boca Grande Fire Chief C.W. Blosser.

Moon "apparently loss track of the tide or his position in the water, and he couldn't get back to higher ground," Blosser told ABC News today. "As the high tide started coming in, the water started getting deep enough for a group of sharks to come closer and closer."

Moon said four to five sharks were circling him at one point, according to Lt. Michael D'Angelo, who was part of the rescue crew.

"By the time we got there, we saw two sharks in the area, though they weren't as close to him as they probably originally were," D'Angelo told ABC News today. He said the sharks were shovelhead and blacktip sharks, which "are usually pretty docile" and "probably just wanted his bait."

"They're pretty common in the area, but they don't give us a lot of problems," he said. "The guy said he just poked them with his fishing rod, which is a common thing for wade fishers to do in the area. Sometimes, they just smack the sharks, too, to get them to go."

Several other fire departments and emergency service units responded to Moon's call, D'Angelo added, but the Boca Grande Fire Department was the one that performed the rescue, since it had a boat small enough to reach Moon in the shallow water.

"We opened the dive door, pulled him in and brought his other equipment out there on board," D'Angelo said. Moon was not visibly injured and did not require medical attention.

Moon told ABC News today that he still "absolutely" plans to "keep fishing."

"I've grown up doing it," he said. "I love it."