RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 2 sourcesThe alligator was later caught and removed by Florida officials
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A woman in Florida was attacked by an alligator and lost her arm - and if it wasn’t for the help of a nearby Good Samaritan , she might have lost a lot more.
On Saturday, the victim was among a group of swimmers in the springs on the Silver River near Ocala, Florida. At some point, the victim caught sight of an alligator approaching the group. She grabbed a paddle and attempted to ward off the animal, but the alligator snapped onto her right arm and dragged her underwater instead.
The victim began screaming for help, which caught the attention of a nearby boater, John Gamache, who was eating lunch with his father.
Gamache told Fox 35 Orlando that the water was crystal clear on the day of the attack, providing him a clear view of the alligator as it was headed toward the swimmers.
"I looked just upriver from us a couple hundred feet and saw an alligator head way above the water and going full speed towards the swimmers," he told the outlet.
He raced his boat toward the swimmers and managed to scare off the alligator before it could do any more damage. Gamache said when he arrived, he found a group of panicked swimmers and an injured woman clutching to a paddle board.
"It was a terrible injury, bones poking out, blood everywhere. Obviously, the minutes mattered," he said.
After seeing the severity of her injuries, Gamache used a rope from his boat to tie off the victim's arm until she could be treated at a hospital, according to Fox 35.
Once the victim had been stabilized, he and his father brought the swimmers onto their boat and sped toward a nearby launch where first responders could take over treating the woman's injuries.
On Sunday, the woman's family told Fox 35 that she survived the ordeal and had been released from the hospital. Unfortunately, the attack left her without her right arm.
Gamache said he has been visiting the Silver Springs area for decades and has never seen an alligator attack there before.
He said he spoke to the victim's family, who were grateful that he and his father intervened.
"They called earlier and we talked for a while and it was heartwarming to hear them explain their emotions," he said. "We're glad that it happened as good as it could have. Like the result is just the sustained injury and nothing more."
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation officers managed to track down the 9-foot 8-inch alligator and remove it from the springs area.
Marion County officials temporarily closed the affected section of the Silver River to allow for the trappers to track down the alligator, but the area reopened on August 9 after it was caught.
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