Great white shark thrashes into cage with diver inside

Man is heard saying: 'Is there anybody in there?'

A diver had a lucky escape after a great white shark broke into an observation cage off the coast of Mexico.

Footage of the encounter shows the shark approaching bait hanging outside the cage before thrashing its way in through the side.

Those on the boat fling the hatch at the top open, and the shark, covered in blood, eventually manages to escape into the Pacific ocean.

A man on the boat can be heard saying: "Is there anybody in there?"

Someone nearby assures him there is not.

But then a man, dressed in a wetsuit and looking shaken climbs out of the top of the cage.

The man who filmed the footage told Sky News:

"When a great white shark lunges and bites something, it is temporarily blinded.

"They also cannot swim backwards so this shark lunged at the bait, accidentally hit the side of the cage, was most likely confused and not able to swim backwards.

"It thrust forward and broke the metal rail of the cage."

Chan Ming, the diver in the cage, had arrived home to Shanghai by the time footage of the incident was released on Thursday. It went viral online and has notched up almost 13 million views on YouTube.

In a post on Facebook , the advertising executive said he did not blame anyone for the incident: “No one need [sic] to take responsibility. The boat teams are professional.”

Mr Chan told the New York Times he still had three more days of diving left after the incident.

When asked whether he got back into the water, he said: "The next day."