Emerson de Oliveira Abreu, a Brazilian from Rio de Janeiro, is used to working in dangerous conditions under the water. As a boat maintanence scuba diver, he’s accustomed to working with tools below sea level. In his spare time, he likes to hunt fish near his home in Ilha do Governador. But this past weekend, his scuba hunting expedition went terribly wrong.

Emerson used a spear in an attempt to kill a fish, but when he shot the spear, it hit a rock and ricocheted, sending the spear directly at Emerson. The spear was driven into his skull.

Luckily, Emerson’s friend was on a boat nearby, and rushed him to a nearby hospital. Doctors quickly performed surgery on him, and were amazed how lucky he was, since the spear missed the most sensitive parts of his brain. Emerson is in recovery, and doing fine. Doctors and family agree it’s a miracle Emerson is alive.

Check out the video about the incident here.