Jordan Rivera, 23, lost his left arm in an attack by a 10-foot alligator in Port Charlotte on Tuesday, May 23. He was behind the Banditos Bar near its closing time when he fell into a pond behind the business and was attacked.
Rivera said he doesn’t remember much about the attack saying the lines to the bathrooms were too long to wait, and he went behind the building to relieve himself and lost his footing and fell into the pond.
Falling into the water is the last thing he said he remembers.
According to the Charlotte County Fire public information officer, Todd Dunn, Charlotte County EMTs got the call of an animal bite at about 1:40 am.
When EMS arrived, bystanders pulled Rivera from the water and applied a tourniquet to his arm to stop the bleeding.
EMS treated Rivera at the scene for losing his arm above the elbow, and then he flew by helicopter to Fort Myers for further treatment.
Rivera lost his arm above the elbow but says he can still move his arm around. Hospital sources say he’s in “fair” condition following the amputation of his arm.
In an interview from his Gulf Coast Medica Center hospital bed, Rivera commented on the attack, saying that he lost his arm, not his life, and said, “It’s not the end of the world.”
Rivera will have an additional surgical procedure to remove bacteria deposited by the alligator in the wound. He will then be moved to a rehabilitation facility.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation received the details of the Rivera attack on May 21. FWC had also responded to the call of an animal bite at the Banditos Bar.
According to the FWC, a professional alligator trapper was sent to the attack scene and located a 10-foot alligator. It was removed from the area and euthanized.
FWC reported alligator fatalities in 2018 and 2019. Seven significant alligator bites and three minor bites were reported to FWC. Nine significant and two minor alligator bites were reported in Florida in 2022.
