A nearly 45-minute 911 call recorded the aftermath of a Monday alligator attack in Polk County, Florida. Take a listen.
BABSON PARK, Fla. – A peaceful kayaking excursion turned into a desperate fight for survival when an alligator attacked a woman in a remote Florida canal.
A group of about 20 kayakers, paddling back to Lake Kissimmee State Park from Tiger Lake, encountered the harrowing incident near the Polk-Osceola County line about 1 p.m. Monday, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) said.
Newly released 911 audio obtained by FOX 13 in Tampa paints a vivid picture of the chaotic scene as the group struggled to help the woman while battling fear and the lingering presence of the aggressive reptile.
“She’s going into shock,” the unidentified caller said following the woman’s significant bite to her elbow. “She’s in real pain.”
FILE – An alligator is seen at the Gator Park in the Florida Everglades in Miami-Dade County.
(Getty Images)
Adding to the terror, the 911 caller said the alligator had snatched a life vest from another kayaker and remained in the vicinity.
The caller’s urgency then escalated as he described the woman’s agony when they attempted to bandage her amid her screams of pain.
“She’s in too much pain to get the bandage on … they can’t open her arm,” the caller said. “Weak pulse and the pulse is going down … they’re doing everything they can.”
Adding to their distress was the challenging terrain – a remote, marshy area without a boat ramp – effectively trapping them in their kayaks and hindering the injured woman’s swift evacuation.
“If there was a ramp, we’d be golden, but we are in the marshy area, and she is half in the boat, and they got her mostly out of the water,” the 911 caller explained.
WATCH: ALLIGATOR PROUDLY CROSSES STREET WITH TASTY TURTLE IN MOUTH
Four hunters in Mississippi were able to recently capture an alligator that weighed in at over 800 pounds and was more than 14 feet long.
As time ticked by, the 911 operator guided the caller through the technical process of sharing their precise location via a pin drop, a crucial step in directing rescue crews to the scene.
After a tense 45 minutes on the line with 911, a helicopter arrived, spotting the group thanks to the paddle waving in the air. The helicopter crew then boarded an airboat to reach the stranded kayakers.
The FWC said a nuisance alligator trapper arrived on the scene shortly after and removed the 8-foot-4-inch alligator.
The injured woman was airlifted to a nearby hospital where her condition is currently unknown.