A Florida A man who lost his hand after being bitten by a crocodile while trying to urinate outside a bar says it is “not the end of the world”.
Identified a local NBC affiliate Jordan Rivera As in the man in question. Rivera reportedly lost his right arm early Sunday morning behind Banditos Bar in Port Charlotte, Florida.
RELATED: Father charged with murder after his two-year-old son was found dead in alligator’s mouth
The 23-year-old somehow remained hopeful about the incident despite losing an appendage, he told the outlet.
“I was just trying to go out there and pee a little bit and whatnot,” he said. Rivera told NBC2, “I didn’t lose my life.” “I lost an arm. It’s not the end of the world…”
Rivera continued: “Those alligators, I didn’t really understand them until I woke up in the hospital and ‘Oh, the alligator’s got your arm.'”
The reptile responsible for the limb tearing was 10 feet 5 inches long. It has since been retrieved from the pond and euthanized according to Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission protocol.
Gator bites man’s right arm just above elbow, recalls shaky memory of incident
Meanwhile, the outlet reports that Rivera conducted an NBC2 interview just 1.5 days after he lost his arm.
The alligator bit off his right arm just above the elbow, nearly killing Jordan. But, he said, he “can still move my arm around and whatnot.”
“He grabbed my elbow. So, I don’t have an elbow,” Rivera said. “I can still move my arm around and what not.”
He told the outlet what he remembered from that morning. After finding the bathroom lines too long at Banditos, Rivera headed back to the pool to relieve herself.
“So I walked up to the water hole, I didn’t know how big it was at the time, because that’s where something happened where I was trapped or the ground beneath me collapsed,” Rivera said. Was.” “I ended up in the water. And that’s literally the last thing I remember.
Rivera says the next thing he remembers was at the hospital, where he was told the alligator had grabbed his arm.
🚨ON ONLY @ nbc 2 🚨 Jordan Rivera lost his right arm when an alligator attacked him on Sunday morning.
Now, he’s only trusting @ nbc 2 To share the story of your existence.
Tonight, I’m talking to Jordan and his mother from the ICU @lee_healthGulf Coast Hospital of. pic.twitter.com/53mKkxNRgv
– Gage Goulding – NBC2 (@GageGoulding) May 23, 2023
Rivera’s mom thanks bar patrons for helping Jordan with alligator attack
He described the sensation of being without arms and called the whole situation “almost out of a movie”.
“It looks like my hand is there, but it’s not there,” he said. “It was just insane. It’s almost out of a movie.
Meanwhile, his mother, Teresa Lessa, told the network it was “very painful” but added, “He’s (still) here.”
“It’s the best thing that I have him. Yes, the arm is gone, very painful. But he is here,” said Teresa Lessa.
Lessa thanked bar patrons like Manny Hidalgo, who sprang into action when they heard Rivera’s screams.
“I call them the angels who were there, who saved his life,” Lesa said. “For me to have someone likely to have a tourniquet, it’s a miracle he’s here.”
Some accused Rivera of trying to feed an alligator, a charge Rivera denied.
While many in Florida praise Rivera’s resilience, others have accused her of trying to feed the alligator.
Rivera categorically denied feeding the alligator at the time of the attack.
He said, ‘This is not completely true. “They don’t even serve food in that bar, so I couldn’t serve alligator food either.”
Those wishing to donate can do so at Rivera’s GoFundMe account Here, Over 90 Donors Raised $13,955 The goal is $50,000 as of the publication of this article.