911 Calls Capture Panic After Florida Alligator Attack

Newly revealed 911 calls capture the frantic efforts to help Dina Rae Spann after an alligator attacked her in the Silver River in Ocala, Florida. A caller told the operator Spann’s arm was badly injured as people tried to get her onto a boat; another caller said her arm was gone. Screaming and crying can be heard in the background of the calls.

Spann, 58, lost her right arm and a finger on her left hand. Her son, Zach Guerrina, said she fought to keep the animal from biting her legs. People at the scene used a rope and Spann’s bikini top as a tourniquet to slow the bleeding, then boaters took her and the other swimmers to land, where emergency crews met them and brought her to a hospital.

A 9-foot, 8-inch alligator was trapped after the attack and the river was reopened to the public. Spann shared a video of her recovery in September and described finding reasons to laugh through difficult moments. She also wrote that the animal had injured her, but had not defeated her.