• News
  • Film and TV
  • Music
  • Tech
  • Features
  • Celebrity
  • Politics
  • Weird
  • Community
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
TikTok
YouTube
Submit Your Content
Boy, 13, recalls horrifying alligator attack which grabbed onto his leg and tried to pull him into a lake

Home> News

Published 11:21 24 Jun 2023 GMT+1

Boy, 13, recalls horrifying alligator attack which grabbed onto his leg and tried to pull him into a lake

The teen was hospitalised over the attack

Emma Rosemurgey

Emma Rosemurgey

A teen has recalled the horrifying moment playing with friends turned to disaster when an alligator grabbed his leg and attempted to pull him back into a lake.

Gabriel Klimis, from Florida, had been playing with pals at a creek near Winter Springs, Orlando on Tuesday, 20 June, when the alligator attacked.

Speaking to Fox 35, the 13-year-old said that he had just jumped off a rope from a bridge crossing over Howell Creek, with one foot on the sand.

Advert

"And then the gator got my other one and pulled me back." he added.

The teen has recalled the horrifying events.
Fox 35

The alligator then firmly attached itself to the boy's leg as he gripped tightly onto a stick on the shore to prevent him being pulled into the water.

"I knew that if he didn't let go, there was no getting him off because his jaw was so tied on. There's no getting out of that," he recalled.

Advert

Fortunately, thanks to his quick thinking, Klimis was able to free himself from the gator's jaw, by hitting the animal and causing it to loosen its grip.

He had been playing with friends at Howell Creek.
Fox 35

He said: "He kept pulling, so then I just tried to hit him and then he let go and then I ran up as fast as I could."

Klimis then ran to the nearest house and called his mother, Alison Klimis, who was left in 'complete shock' and 'terror' over the events.

Advert

The teen, however, remained calm and told the 911 dispatcher: "Yeah I can walk, I just got bit by a gator. It just stings a bit but I'm good."

When asked about the wound, Klinis explained that it wasn't 'bleeding too bad' but that his skin was 'like open pretty good'.

The teen was taken to hospital where doctors stitched up his wound, but he hasn't been deterred by the whole incident.

The teen has been left unphased.
Fox 35

Advert

He said: "It's not going to stop me from swimming somewhere else, like in a different creek or something, with my friends and having fun."

His mum was 'grateful' that her son was able to make out of the attack largely unscathed.

"In the end, I'm just blessed, grateful, thankful that the angels were watching over him and God was there because I know without that, my son could definitely be gone," she told the station.

Following the attack, an alligator was captured and killed by a nuisance trapper in Howell Springs, however, there's no way of knowing whether it is the same one that bit Klimisr.

Featured Image Credit: Fox35 / Michael Patrick O'Neill / Alamy Stock Photo

Topics: US News, Animals

Emma Rosemurgey
Emma Rosemurgey

Advert

Advert

Advert

  • Pro surfer's leg washes up on shore after horrifying shark attack
  • Bull rider recalls horrifying moment he almost died after animal's horns went through his neck
  • Boy hailed hero after risking his life to save sister from brutal dog attack
  • Dad recalls the panicked final call he received from son before he died while kayaking on lake

Choose your content:

an hour ago
2 hours ago
  • an hour ago

    Scientists in Antarctica baffled as they discover mysterious radio signals coming from beneath ice

    Scientists said it was a 'double-edged sword problem'

    News
  • an hour ago

    People think they've spotted 'sad and pathetic' detail in Trump's military parade speech that's left them 'embarrassed'

    Donald Trump delivered a speech at the parade over the weekend

    News
  • an hour ago

    Artist Nezza says she’s 'banned' from singing at LA Dodgers stadium after performance of The Star-Spangled Banner

    Nezza was invited to perform the national anthem ahead of a baseball game over the weekend

    Celebrity
  • 2 hours ago

    Josh Duhamel, 52, gives insight into sex life with wife, 31, as he reveals surprisingly intimate detail

    The Transformers actor said taking testosterone has benefitted many aspects of his life.

    Celebrity