A woman almost had her arm ripped off by an alligator after it attacked 20 kayakers, with one man aiming for the animal's eyes in an effort to fight it off.

A group of kayakers was attacked by an alligator. Credit: Moelyn Photos / Getty

The chaos erupted on March 3 as a group of 20 kayakers made their way down a canal in Polk County, according to a newly released report by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, as cited by 7News Miami, ABC17news, and KSNB Local 4.

Among the group was 64-year-old Christiane Salvador, who was kayaking alongside her husband Philip when she suddenly sensed something brush against her paddle near the area known as Tiger Creek.

Moments later, her kayak flipped, and she was thrown into the water.

“There’s an alligator on my arm,” Christiane reportedly screamed, desperately trying to keep her head above the surface as the predator clamped down.

Her husband sprang into action, managing to hoist her onto their overturned kayak. But her arm was still trapped underwater in the gator’s grip.

As panic spread through the group, another kayaker arrived to assist — only to become the gator’s next target.

According to the report, the reptile bit into the man’s lifejacket and dragged him under.

But in a moment of sheer bravery, the unnamed hero jabbed his fingers into the alligator’s eyes and then stripped off his vest. The reptile swam away, dragging the lifejacket with it.

The alligator — reportedly over 8 feet long — was eventually captured and euthanized, according to officials.

The alligator was later captured. Credit: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

Christiane Salvador was airlifted to Osceola Regional Hospital, where doctors began treating her devastating arm injury. She is expected to undergo multiple reconstructive surgeries.

Wildlife experts believe the attack may have been a case of maternal defense. Reptile expert Kim Titterington told 7News Miami that the alligator was likely a female protecting her young.

“If you walk out back, and you’re sitting in your lawn chair, and all of a sudden a parade of 20 people just walk through your backyard, you are going to feel like you need to defend your space,” Titterington explained.

“When a female has her babies, they are very defensive, high protection, because they have to protect their babies from other male gators as well.”

Officials have not released further details on the ongoing investigation.

According to the FWC (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission), there have been, on average, eight unprovoked alligator attacks per year over the last 10 years.

While Florida has a large alligator population (around 1.3 million), the probability of a Florida resident being seriously injured in an unprovoked alligator incident is roughly 1 in 3.1 million.

Featured image credit: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

A man filming an instructional video in Florida found himself out of his depth when he was attacked by an enormous alligator.

Miraculously, not only did the man survive that attack - he also caught the whole thing on video.

JC Defeats - real name JC La Verde - told Fox 13 in Tampa that he was shooting a video with an overhead drone for his Defeat-X company on August 3 when the monster gator appeared.

In footage from the incident, the estimated 12-foot-long alligator can be seen swimming directly at the 34-year-old as he paddles unknowingly away from the shore.

Credit: Sally Weigand / Alamy (Stock image)

Defeats described how the animal clamped its jaws around his head and upper torso, biting down hard. He put his hands inside the reptile's mouth before she suddenly let go - and he managed to escape.

"She let go and she didn't have to let go," he explained, before describing how he managed to swim to the shore. The videographer claimed that, while the attack was horrific, he had "an unbelievable amount of faith in myself that I wasn’t going to die. I was going to be OK, but I needed to act."

Check out the moment below:

"What I think I did - what I felt like I did - was that I immediately tried to open its jaws because I knew I was in a gator," he told 23ABC Bakersfield.

After freeing himself, Defeats was able to swim to a dock and hoist himself up.

After neighbors called emergency services, Defeats was rushed to the hospital where he underwent six hours of surgery. The alligator had crushed his head, broken his jaw, and damaged a nerve in his face; doctors had to remove part of his skull and temporal lobe before wiring his jaw shut.

The victim spent eight days in the hospital and will have to return to have a metal plate put over his brain to replace the missing bones.

Credit: Sally Weigand / Alamy

But despite everything, Defeats claims that the experience has given him a new perspective on life - and that he feels better than ever.

In an interview with ABC Tampa, he said: "I am perfectly fine. I am actually even better because this gave me a new perspective, you know, and not many people get that."

Defeats added that his faith had carried him through the traumatic ordeal, saying: "Find your God. Find Him. It's silly. I get that that's scary, I do, but life is a scary place, so you can carry that load by yourself or have someone carry it for you."

Featured Image Credit: Phil Degginger / Alamy

A Florida woman has been killed by a 10ft alligator while attempting to rescue her dog from its jaws as the pair were out on a walk together.

The unnamed 85-year-old woman was walking her dog at the Spanish Lakes Fairways community in Fort Pierce yesterday (February 20).

As reported by the Daily Mail, the reptile - which comes in at around 10 feet and weighs approximately 700 lbs - leaped from the water and attacked the canine.

The 85-year-old bravely fought back, but the reptile turned its attention to her instead, with eyewitnesses telling CBS News that she was dragged into the water.

The woman was sadly killed during the attack and her body was later recovered, with the dog miraculously surviving and being treated for its injuries.

Officials found the alligator and removed it from the water, with those in charge of capturing the reptile stating that it was "definitely a fight."

Speaking to WPBF, Robert Lilly, an alligator trapper working for the FWC, said: "Snagged him [the alligator] on the bottom. He never surfaced. He stayed down the whole time. Got a second hook in him and then a hard line in him so we could get him up."

They then bound the alligator using a rope which included ensuring that it was unable to open its jaw, and images were taken of officials sitting on top of it.

There are roughly 1.3 million alligators in Florida. Credit: James Schwabel / Alamy

As per the Daily Mail, this is the third person to be killed by an alligator in Florida since last July, when an elderly woman was killed by two alligators after falling into a pond at the Boca Royale Golf and Country Club in Englewood.

Around 1.3 million alligators live in Florida and they are likely to be found in most bodies of fresh water, but some can be spotted in salt water.

Authorities offered their condolences to the family of the woman, and the FWC (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission) released the following statement, via CBS.

"Serious injuries caused by alligators are rare in Florida. The FWC places the highest priority on public safety and administers a Statewide Nuisance Alligator Program (SNAP) to address complaints concerning specific alligators believed to pose a threat to people, pets, or property.

"People with concerns about an alligator should call FWC's toll-free Nuisance Alligator Hotline at 866-FWC-GATOR (866-392-4286). When someone concerned about an alligator calls the Nuisance Alligator Hotline, we will dispatch one of our contracted nuisance alligator trappers to resolve the situation."

There have been three reported killings by an alligator since last July. Credit: Arto Hakola / Alamy

Our thoughts are with the loved ones of the woman.

Featured image credit: blickwinkel/M. Woike / Alamy

Harrowing footage reveals the heartbreaking moments after a 14ft alligator ate a 41-year-old mom.Last September, Sabrina Peckham's body was found in the jaws of a 14-foot alligator who had attacked her and dragged her to a nearby body of water along a residential street in Largo, Florida.Authorities were alerted after a concerned local witness named Jamarcus Bullard spotted the vicious animal with what initially looked like a mannequin in its mouth."I noticed it had a body in its mouth - like a lower torso - so once I saw that I ran straight to the fire department," he told Fox13 News. "It was pale and white," telling outlets that the beast was "just clamped onto it, and swam backward to the bottom of the canal... I just couldn't believe it was real".Peckham's body was found dead in the jaws of a 14-foot male alligator. Credit: Roger Lisenko / 500px / GettyPeckham was reported to have been homeless at the time and living in an encampment near a canal where the predator was later found.Once emergency service arrived on the scene along with the assistance of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, they removed the alligator from the area and "humanely killed" it.Deputies assigned to the case also discovered human remains inside which were later confirmed to be that of Peckham.A few months after the deadly attack, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission released horrific footage after Peckham's untimely death.The clip began with authorities locating the camp where the late mom had been living, which was situated around 35-45 ft from the canal.It then showed the huge animal surrounded by police moments after it was "humanely" killed. Its stomach is visibly swollen with the deceased inside.Furthermore, officials also shared a clip of the moment the alligator was gunned down. "Watch them, watch them," a voice is heard shouting before the trigger is pulled.The alligator was removed from the area and "humanely killed". Credit: John Coletti / GettyAccording to Fox13 News, Peckham's family revealed that they last saw her a day before the attack, telling police that she didn't show any signs of being in the water or coming into contact with an alligator.A park ranger also claimed that they saw the woman walking around the canal - which connects two alligator-infested lakes - a week earlier.Many people speculated that Peckham provoked the alligator, but her daughter, Breauna Dorris, debunked the rumors in a heartbreaking post shared a few days after her mom was killed."Hi all," she penned. "The past 24 hours have been filled with grief and sorrow and unbearable pain for our family. I’m posting this to put rumors to rest and ask for everyone’s help."The teen stated that her mom did not “taunt” the alligator, explaining: "My mother was apart of the homeless population that lived in the nearby wooded area. It is believed that she may have been walking to or from her campsite near the creek in the dark and the alligator attacked from the water.""My mother only being 41, we had not expected to do this anytime soon. We expected to have many many more years with her. Unfortunately, god has called her home sooner than our hearts were ready," she continued.Breauna then expressed her love for her mom, adding: "I’m so sorry this happened to you. I pray you are at peace and you are no longer struggling or hurting. I pray you found momo and pop and you all are watching down from above."Our thoughts continue to be with Peckham's loved ones.Featured image credit: Pilesasmiles / Getty

A woman found dead after a suspected alligator attack has been identified by authorities in Florida.

As reported by BBC News, Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that 41-year-old Sabrina Peckham was the victim of Friday's attack involving a male alligator measuring nearly 14 feet in length.

The woman - who is reported to have been homeless - was pulled from a canal in Largo after witnesses reported that the predator had a corpse in its mouth.

The authorities revealed in a statement that with the help of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), the animal was "humanely killed" and pulled from the canal.

Footage taken at the scene shows a huge alligator sprawled by the road and surrounded by police.

According to the outlet, a local witness named Jamarcus Bullard told US media that he was walking to a job interview when he spotted the vicious animal with what initially looked like a mannequin in its mouth.

"I noticed it had a body in its mouth - like a lower torso - so once I saw that I ran straight to the fire department," he said, as cited by BBC News. "It was my first time seeing a gator in real life so I was like it's pretty cool, but once I saw what it had I was like 'Is that like a mannequin?'"

"It was pale and white," he continued, telling another publication that the animal was "just clamped onto it, and swam backward to the bottom of the canal... I just couldn't believe it was real".

Bullard also told WFLA that he hurled a rock at the alligator when he saw it holding onto the lower part of the victim’s torso. The gator then yanked the body underwater.

The alligator navigates the waterway. Credit: Bruce Bennett / Getty

Peckham's daughter, Breauna Dorris, wrote in a heartbreaking Facebook post that her mother was "part of the homeless population" and lived near the body of water.

"It is believed that she may have been walking to or from her campsite near the creek in the dark and the alligator attacked from the water," Ms Dorris wrote in her post. "No matter how you put it, no one deserves to die like this."

Addressing her mother, she continued: "I love you more than I ever expressed, I miss you more than you’ll ever know and I pray that you are looking down over me and your grandchildren. Please protect us."

"I’m so sorry this happened to you. I pray you are at peace and you are no longer struggling or hurting. I pray you found momo and pop and you all are watching down from above," she concluded.

The family has now created a GoFundMe page to raise money for funeral costs. As of this writing, more than $6,245 had been raised.

"We will be using the funds raised from the GoFundMe to put my mother to rest in our family plot," Dorris said on the social media platform. "My mother only being 41, we had not expected to do this anytime soon. We expected to have many many more years with her."

The cause and circumstances of Peckham’s death have not yet been confirmed.

An autopsy is expected to be carried out, and an investigation remains underway.

Featured image credit: Moelyn Photos / Getty