One minute he had a fully functional arm, and the next, he didn’t.
“She snapped my arm backward!”
Eric Merda lived to tell that tale after going for a dip in what he now realizes was alligator-infested waters.
Going for a swim when it’s getting dark outside is probably not the smartest thing to do, especially when you live in a state that’s known for its sharp and snappy wildlife.
However, Eric had gotten lost in the woods, and at the time it seemed like it’d be the fastest way to get back home to his family.
The only thing standing between this Florida man and civilization was Lake Manatee, but unfortunately for him, it didn’t live up to its cutesy name.
Instead of being surrounded by a herd of goofy-looking herbivores, Eric found himself in a battle for his life with a very determined meat-eating monster!
Earlier in the day after he finished a maintenance job for work, Eric made a pit stop at Lake Manatee Fish Camp. He threw away some trash, but then lost his bearings while walking in the woods.
When he found the lake again and spotted his truck on the other side, he thought he was home-free!
Eric soon realized he had actually traded one harrowing predicament for something that was ten times worse.
As he swam toward the far shore, the 43-year-old suddenly found his forearm locked in the jaws of a hungry alligator!
The 7-foot beast dragged him under once. Then twice. Eric managed to escape after it tried to drown him for the third time, but he was now missing his right arm and slowly bleeding out.
Understandably, he was alone, scared, and ready to give up on life.
For the next three days, while flies feasted on his rotting flesh, Eric survived by drinking murky lake water, eating flowers, and sleeping on Florida’s swampy version of a waterbed.
“I was like, ‘Man. I ain’t got nothing to live for. Let’s just lay and die – to hell with it.” – he told USA Today.
Thankfully his survival instincts kicked in, and after following some power lines for three days, he finally found help.
“It’s do or die. Do you want to live or die. I was given the opportunity to make a choice, and I decided to live.”
Eric told FOX 13 Tampa Bay that the attack actually gave him something to live for. He could have just as easily let the gator sink its teeth into the rest of his body, but he didn’t.
As for the ultimate takeaway message, Eric wants everyone to “stop feeding the alligators.”
Feeding alligators, or any wildlife, is a huge no-no because it makes them associate humans with food.
And we really don’t need to live in a world where gators happily look forward to chomping on a Soylent Green snack every time they see a tiny splash in the water (spoiler alert: Soylent Green is people).
Despite his traumatic experience, Eric told USA Today that he’s actually thriving.
“I’m thriving. I’m actually thriving. I’m going up, and I’m not coming back down.”
Eric, who has a 4-year-old son, can still pick him up with his good arm. As for explaining what happened to the missing appendage, Eric’s son just innocently smiles and laughs when he tells the boy he got into a “fight with an alligator.”
Eric’s aunt set up a GoFundMe page to help him on his long journey of healing. “He will no longer be able to do the work he loves, and many other things he loved doing. My heart is broken but we are so thankful he is alive.”
Watch the video below to learn more about Eric’s amazing story of survival.
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