A Texas woman is recovering after an alligator severely injured her arm during a Florida kayaking trip.
POLK COUNTY, Fla. — A Texas woman is recovering from a terrifying alligator attack that happened while she was kayaking with a group in Florida earlier this year.
The incident occurred on Tiger Creek in Polk County and left her with severe injuries to her arm, requiring extensive medical care.
According to a report, 64-year-old Christiane Salvador and her husband were among a group of 20 people kayaking in early March when Salvador felt something bump her paddle. Moments later, the paddle snapped, apparently bitten in half by an alligator.
Her kayak overturned, and witnesses reported seeing her struggling to stay afloat. That’s when she screamed, “There’s an alligator on my arm.”
Her husband managed to pull her onto the overturned kayak, but the alligator still had her elbow locked in its jaws. A third kayaker rushed in to help, but the gator attacked again, this time grabbing the front of his life vest and pulling him underwater.
That man later said he freed himself by sticking his fingers deep into the alligator’s eyes. He unbuckled his life vest, which the gator swam off with in its mouth. A photo later showed the torn vest as evidence of how close the encounter was.
The wound near Salvador’s elbow was described as too graphic to release publicly. Initially, it was unclear whether her arm could be saved, but doctors now believe amputation won’t be necessary. Still, she faces multiple reconstructive surgeries and physical therapy to regain use of her arm.
“This sounds like a scene out of a horror movie,” reporter Michelle Meredith said.
“Right, and I’m sure for the people who were going through it were terrified,” replied Kim Titterington, a reptile expert.
Experts believe the attack may have been a natural response during alligator mating and nesting season. The gator involved was a female more than eight feet long.
“If you walked out back and you’re sitting in your lawn chair and all of a sudden a parade of 20 people just walk through your backyard, you are going to feel like you need to defend your space,” Titterington said. “And again, when a female has her babies, they are very defensive… because they have to protect their babies from other male gators as well.”
State wildlife officials later confirmed that alligator hunters had tracked and euthanized the gator responsible.
Salvador’s road to recovery will be long, but doctors are hopeful she’ll regain functionality in her arm.