Florida woman shares upbeat video diary after losing arm to alligator attack

A Florida woman has released a video diary that is both shocking and strangely upbeat, documenting her life after a brutal alligator attack took her left arm. Dina Spann, 58, shared this new footage while recovering from an incident on August 5 near the Silver River in Marion County. She was swimming with two teen relatives when a massive nine-foot alligator struck her. The New York Post reported that Spann fought back but lost her left forearm and had to have her right ring finger amputated.

In the video, she appears dressed in a kaftan after entering the hospital for an X-ray and meeting medical staff. Her remaining arm is bandaged, and stitches are visible on her right hand. She posted this message on Facebook just a week into recovery: "Recovery isn't always pretty." But I'm learning to laugh through the hard parts and celebrate every little victory. The gator got a piece of me, she added with dark humor. It didn't get the best of me.

Her son, Zach Guerrina, explained the chaos to reporters. He said his mother tried to use a stick to fend off the beast before it latched on. Her arm was hanging by a thread at that point. She fought back with her hands to protect the other swimmers nearby. She wasn't just letting it happen, he insisted. She was trying to hold its mouth shut and swim to the surface for air while keeping it from biting her legs. Despite the craziness of the situation, his mother remained as calm as a f**king cucumber.

John Gamache and his father were having lunch on their boat when they spotted the attack. He told Fox News that the injury was terrible with bones poking out and blood everywhere. Obviously, the minutes mattered. Gamache helped take the rest of the family to the closest boat launch so help could arrive quickly. Bystanders rushed in after the attack. They tied up her arm with an anchor rope alongside her bathing suit top to stabilize it for transport. Guerrina said he is very proud of his mom. She is not looking at it like, Oh my God, I don't have an arm. She is looking at it like this is a crazy f**king story.

Spann's husband has urged the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to grant permits for large alligators to be removed from the water. The specific gator that attacked her was eventually caught, and the river reopened to the public. This horrific event follows another deadly incident in June when a hiker died after being killed by a huge thirteen-foot alligator. That attack happened on June 28 when Brittany Clark was swimming in the Econlockhatchee River at Little Big Econ State Forest. An eleven-year-old boy also lost his hand in June following an alligator strike. Brodie Terry, another victim, was on a fishing trip with his dad in Marion County when an eight-foot gator struck him as he was releasing a fish back into the river. These incidents highlight how dangerous these creatures can be and why government regulations regarding their presence matter so much to families heading out for recreation.