Alligator attack leaves man armless in Florida

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — An alligator attacked a man’s arm while he was behind a bar in southwest Florida early Sunday morning.

A 23-year-old man was attacked in Port Charlotte near Banditos Bar, a spokesperson for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said, according to CBS News. The man was a patron of the bar, which is located next to a pond.

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Manny Hidalgo, a witness to the incident, said that he heard a man screaming from the pond area and went outside to look.

“He was yelling and swimming toward the shoreline,” Hidalgo said. “I ran and dragged him up onto the sand. I was scared to get close to the water because it was dark out.”

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When Hidalgo pulled the man out, he discovered that the 23-year-old had his arm bitten into, prompting a medical helicopter to respond. The victim was taken to Gulf Coast Hospital in Fort Myers where his arm was amputated, Charlotte County Fire and EMS Spokesperson Todd Dunn said.

An alligator trapper removed the 10-and-a-half-foot alligator from the property.

Patrons of the bar were known to feed the alligators by throwing their leftovers into the pond.

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