Video: Brazilian man survives after harpooning himself in the head The Brazilian was cleaning the loaded firearm, which he uses to go fishing, when he accidentally set it off and fired the spear into his left eye socket. Doctors were amazed when Mr Coutinho, who lives in Petropolis, 40 miles north of Rio de Janeiro arrived at Santa Teresa hospital 10 hours after the incident, still concious. He underwent a four-hour operation which saw the harpoon removed.