A 25-year-old diver was left with 34 stitches and a number of puncture wounds after they were bitten on the head by an alligator.
Jeffrey Heim, the diver, was left with horrifying injuries, which includes puncture wounds, skull fracture and 34 stitches on hi head.
Talking about the incident, the man said that he had no time to defend himself when they were being attacked by the animal.
Heim said it was like he was hit by a fast-moving boat.
The man was wearing his diving gear as they were diving in the Myakka River in Florida while searching for megalodon teeth before getting attacked by the gator.
A report by WFLA said that the gator was a female and was around 9 feet long.
The man said he was only in the water for around a minute when they got attacked from the back.
He added:
I came up and I just get blasted by what felt like a propeller, like a boat going 50mph. It pulled me down with my mask off. You never understand the power of a wild animal like that until you’re in its mouth.
Jeffrey said that the alligator bit down twice on his head.
All he did was use his hand to protect them from getting crushed.
Recalling the moment, he said:
I think my hand may have protected my face because I got a puncture wound in the top and a puncture wound in the bottom but it just happened so fast there was no way I could have defended myself. We just looked at each other and I didn’t flail around because that would have just triggered its prey instincts even more. I was calm, thank God, so now I know how I react in a situation like that.
How did he survive? It was pure luck.
After some time, the alligator lost interest and suddenly swam 4 feet away allowing him to move backwards until he reached dry land.
The man swam back to the shore, where he found 4 people, who called 911 and got him to the hospital.
He also said that it was really hard to remain conscious in the ambulance.
Talking about the experience while getting rushed to the hospital, he said:
It’s very scary when you ask someone, ‘am I going to be ok?’ and they hesitate. And they just reassure you and you can hear it in their voice that it’s worse than what they’re telling you. That’s scary.
Despite the horrifying injuries that he got, the man did not suffer any brain damage.
Jeffrey said that he was wrong for invading the territory of the alligator.
He believes the alligator attacked him because she was protecting her eggs.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Committee said that they are finding the alligator.
In the statement that they released, they said:
FWC’s response to alligator bite incidents is to remove the alligator involved. FWC wildlife experts use sound methods and take only those alligators needed to resolve the risk to public safety. Analysis is conducted to ensure the responsible alligator has been removed.
Luckily, he’s alright now.