Man learns to live with one arm after alligator attack

A man continues to adjust to life after losing an arm following an alligator attack.

“I have PTSD. I have dreams of me being near that water about two or three times a night,” said Jordan Rivera.

The 24-year-old fell into a pond behind a bar while trying to relieve himself. Moments later, a 10-foot alligator tore off his arm.

A group of good Samaritans managed to pull Rivera out of the water.

Rivera told WINK News he has no memories of the alligator attack outside Banditos Bar in May of 2023.

With his right arm gone forever, it’s fair to say he will never be the same, but Rivera told WINK News that does not stop him from pushing forward.

Rivera sat down with WINK News reporter Maddie Heron at his home, where he showed her some of the ways he is adjusting almost a year and a half later.

Rivera said all he remembers is using the bathroom near a pond just outside a Port Charlotte bar in May 2023.

“It was just like a flash, and then I was in the hospital,” said Rivera.

Waking up in the hospital, Rivera didn’t realize an alligator, later caught by the
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, had attacked him, let alone what the massive reptile took with it.

“For me to wake up and someone to tell me I have no arm, and that this was an alligator had gotten on me, I was like, ‘An alligator?’ The last thing I would have thought of in the world,” said Rivera.

His injury turns once simple tasks into daily struggles, but for Rivera, losing his arm does not mean losing his motivation.

“I do pretty much most things most people do, but maybe a different type of way. That’s exactly how I look at it,” said Rivera.

Rivera showed us some of the adjustments he has made.

To name a few, he drives his car using a special-grip steering wheel. When it comes to putting on a belt, what first took him half an hour now takes less than a minute.

It marks a sign of growth, as he continues to navigate his new reality.

“I realize that I have one arm, but that doesn’t let me down. I don’t let anything hold me back. I wake up. It’s a new step for me. I take a step every day,” said Rivera.