Alligator latches onto zoo handler in Utah. Watch as guests jump to her rescue
A petting zoo handler in Utah was rescued after an alligator latched onto her arm and pulled her into a tank.
The 8-foot-long alligator bit Lindsay Bull Saturday at Scales and Tails Utah during a feeding, sending her to the hospital, The Salt Lake Tribune reported.
The petting zoo — located in West Valley City, a suburb of Salt Lake City — said in a Facebook post that “things took a bad turn” after an alligator bit one of the handlers while a group of children looked on. It said guests Donnie Wiseman and Todd and Amy Christopher came to her rescue.
“These gentleman could have stayed in the safety zone as most of us would, but instead jumped into the situation, of their own volition, and helped secure the alligator,” zoo officials wrote. “Their help, combined with the training of our staff member, probably saved her life and her limbs. Mrs. Christopher had a nursing background and started first aid prior to the EMT’s arrival and we thank her for that as well. Our staff member is doing well and is in recovery.”
Video of the incident posted on social media shows Bull approaching the alligator and trying to push it back before the animal bites her hand and won’t let go.
A man, identified as Wiseman, can be heard yelling “we’ve got trouble in here!” before jumping into the tank and pinning the reptile. Another man, Todd Christopher, helps her escape from the water while Wiseman stays on top of the alligator.
“Everybody keeps saying ‘you’re so calm, you’re so calm,’ I guess I just think that in that situation I just maybe didn’t have much of a choice,” Bull said, according to Fox 13 Now. “It’s like, be calm and hopefully keep everything intact or, you know, if you freak out there’s just such a higher chance that something can go wrong.”
“I cannot express enough gratitude to both of those men, Donnie and Todd, that were right there, supporting me through that,” Bull continued.
Bull said in a Facebook post Monday that an orthopedic surgeon found a way for her to likely keep full use of her hand.
“I can’t explain the level of admiration I have for that man,” Bull wrote.
Bull plans to return to work after recovering from the attack, according to The Salt Lake Tribune.
This story was originally published August 17, 2021 at 12:21 PM with the headline "Alligator latches onto zoo handler in Utah. Watch as guests jump to her rescue."