Posted on 06/12/2021 12:56:15 PM PDT by simpson96
SARASOTA, Fla. (WFLA) – A Florida man is recovering after surviving an alligator attack over the weekend.
Jeffrey Heim was diving in the Myakka River on Sunday looking for megalodon teeth when he was attacked from behind by an alligator.
“I thought it was a boat it hit me so fast or it felt like it was so fast,” the 25-year-old said.
He told our sister station WFLA he wasn’t in the water for very long when the attack happened. He thinks the alligator was about 9 feet long and possibly a female. It’s currently alligator mating season in Florida.
“I look up and the gator is right in front of me and we are looking at each other and we are both confused,” added Heim.
Heim now has 34 stitches in his head, a minor skull fracture and bite marks on one of his hands. Doctors told him there is no brain damage from the attack, which he said is a miracle. He will have the stitches for at least a few weeks.
“If it would have got me anywhere else, it could have been a different story. The chance of me walking away from that is why it is a miracle,” said Heim.
He is also grateful for the good Samaritans who called 911 and took care of him while he waited for the ambulance to arrive.
While Heim recovers from his injuries, he is unable to work at his job as a personal trainer.
(Excerpt) Read more at fox8.com ...
See, we were exactly as stupid in the same way...
We saved our “swimming” for retention ponds. It was a test of manhood.
:)
there are alligators as far north as north carolina...
there’s no guarantee that they’re not present in any florida waters...
You are wrong:
There are no gators in the tubing area of the Ichetucknee which eventually merges into the Santa Fe River, where the water’s color and temperature are very different. You will see alligators here. But this is not close to where the Ichetucknee’s state park section is. So go ahead and enjoy this natural beauty with peace of mind and common sence!
Water is too cold just as it is in the picture posted
i live not too far from that area...
there are alligators in pretty much every pond, lake, and river in florida...
just because they aren’t reported doesn’t mean they aren’t there...
“Doctors told him there is no brain damage from the attack”
Seems like the brain damage was there already.
“See, we were exactly as stupid in the same way...”
Back then, gators were afraid of humans.
I was doing it around 2000-2005.
I’m from FL. Always assume there are gators in the water.
Did anyone tell this Yankee invader the Sarasota waters including the some beaches are full of gators or bull sharks .
Not sure if he found any teeth, but some teeth sure found him.
I can vouch for that. Last week I was visiting a friend who lives in a very urban area in Richmond VA. His house and the houses around it were built in the late 1940s. According to my friend, the nearest park is about 5 miles away. When I was about 100 yds away from my friend's house, I saw a deer walking down the sidewalk.
Why would anybody jump in a body of freshwater anywhere in the state of Florida?
************
Bro. The salt water down here? Even worse. I’m staying in the boat.
Same reason we don't wear masks. Odds of getting attacked by a gator in FL are 1 in 3.2 million; we like to enjoy life down here, not be afraid of a highly unlikely occurrence that leads to death.
This topic was posted , thanks simpson96.
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