Homeless man taking a bath in a pond loses toes, fingers in gator attack
A homeless man, taking a bath in a Florida pond, has lost his left index finger, two toes and a testicle, according to reports.
Fredric Iman, 68, said a 2.7 metre alligator grabbed hold of him from behind at a retention pond in Port Charlotte, south of Tampa on Monday morning.
“I tried to get it away, and it tried to pull me in,” he said.
“I turned around and punched it in the eye.”
Mr Iman told WZVN he usually takes a morning bath in the pond.
But after being bitten several times on his left foot and leg, left hand, and groin, Iman had to escape the jaws of an alligator and trek up to a nearby surgery centre where a worker called police.
“It ate his toes off,” the employee reportedly said, while speaking to a 911 operator.
Paramedics arrived and airlifted Iman to a Fort Myers hospital.
Officials said his condition improved from serious to stable on Tuesday.
The 68-year-old said he didn’t realise the extent of his injuries at the time and didn’t feel any pain.
“What’s been getting to me emotionally is that I’m alone 24/7, 365,” he said.
“And I think being a self-taught physical healing arts professional, I deserve better than that.”
But despite a run in with an aggressive gator Mr Iman, who has been homeless for man than 20 years, said he doesn’t plan on stopping his bathing routine anytime soon.
“It’s just what’s happened, and I gotta deal with it,” he explained. “I gotta get back out onto the street, missing a finger and two toes, you know that’s not real pleasant.”
Florida Fish and Wildlife officials said the alligator was later removed from the pond and euthanised.
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Mr Iman’s injuries follow a similar incident in North Queensland in May.
Smitten teen Lee de Paauw, 18, nearly lost his arm fighting off a saltwater crocodile after jumping into the Johnstone River at Innisfail.
Mr de Paauw was trying to impress English backpacker Sophie Paterson and was lucky to escape with two broken bones and two gouges on his left arm.
