Keith Lusher 08.19.26
A Florida woman lost her right arm after a nearly 10-foot alligator grabbed her while she was swimming in the Silver River near Ocala on Saturday.
The attack happened Aug. 8 in Marion County as the woman was swimming with a group in the river. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the woman was bitten on the arm by an alligator.
The woman reportedly saw the alligator approaching and attempted to push it away with a paddle. Instead, the animal grabbed her right arm and pulled her beneath the surface.
Nearby boater John Gamache was eating lunch with his father when they heard people yelling for help.
Gamache spotted the commotion and quickly drove his boat toward the swimmers. By the time he reached the group, the alligator had released the woman and she was holding onto a paddleboard.
Gamache immediately realized how serious her injuries were.
“It was a terrible injury, bones poking out, blood everywhere,” Gamache said. “Obviously, the minutes mattered.”
Using a rope from his boat, Gamache tied off the woman’s injured arm in an effort to slow the bleeding. He then helped get her and the other swimmers aboard before transporting them to a nearby boat launch.
The woman was taken to a local hospital for treatment. Her family later confirmed that her arm had to be amputated. She has since been released from the hospital and is recovering at home.
FWC officers and a nuisance alligator trapper responded to the area following the attack. On Sunday, officials captured and removed a 9-foot-8-inch alligator from the area.
The attack comes during a summer that has already seen several serious alligator encounters in Florida.
On June 28, a woman was killed while swimming in the Econlockhatchee River in Little Big Econ State Forest in Seminole County. Earlier in June, a man was attacked by an alligator while snorkeling in the Rainbow River, also in Marion County.
Another incident occurred July 3 when a man was attacked by an alligator while fishing behind his home in North Fort Myers.
Despite the recent incidents, FWC officials say serious injuries caused by alligators remain rare in Florida.
For Gamache, the outcome could have been much worse. The woman’s family later contacted him to thank him for helping save her life.
“We’re glad that it happened as good as it could have,” Gamache said. “The result is just the sustained injury and nothing more.”
