Beachgoers watched in horror as a raccoon who had scaled a block of flats lost its grip and plummeted to the ground.
The dramatic video shows the animal falling from the nine-storey building as residents watch from their balconies.
It seemed to have climbed to the startlingly height before it became unsure of how to get down.
The critter had attracted a crowd of people who watched in amazement as it managed to get so high, with some people attempting to lure it onto their balcony in a bid to help.
But in seconds the daredevil fell from the building and hit the sand below with a thud, but miraculously it ran away, seemingly unharmed.
Micha Rea, from South Carolina, US, was on holiday with friends when he saw the raccoon in New Jersey and immediately started filming.
He pans the camera, catching the stunned crowd who had all stopped to watch the helpless animal and brings it back to the apartment building just as it fell.
The raccoon sprung away from the wall and flapped its arms and legs desperately as it fell to the ground. As the onlookers gasp as it hit the ground with a thud, the raccoon jumps up and runs away.
Making the footage even more bizarre, raccoons are nocturnal, so the sighting was an unusual one.
They are native to North America and have a similar reputation to that of an urban fox in the UK.
This isn’t the first time that a raccoon has performed such a death-defying stunt.
The ‘Minnesota Raccoon’ climbed up a 25-storey building in the city, sparking a frenzy on social media.
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Experts were called to intervene and rescue the brave animal, which had apparently been trying to raid pigeon nests in June.
Locals said the raccoon had been without food and water for two days as it was stranded on the UBS tower in downtown St Paul, Minnesota in the US.
The animal climbed up and down the pebbled concrete walls as it tried to find a way to safety, and took naps on the window ledges. Luckily, the raccoon managed to get to the top and was resuced.
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