While on vacation in South America, a woman from England is attacked by a dolphin, which seriously injures her.
Claire Bay, 28, was swimming in a river in Santa Rosa de Yacoma, Bolivia when a pink dolphin nearly tore off her right foot. Unable to free herself, she screamed for help and witnesses at the scene tried to save her.
It took 20 seconds before the animal released its grip, allowing the young woman to climb out of the water.
“I kept thinking I was going to lose my foot. My skin was in tatters and I could see my bones,” Ms Bay told British media The Independent, adding that she was “horrified” when she saw the condition of her foot.
Initially rushed to the nearest hospital, she had to be taken four days later to treat a life-threatening infection. At a hospital in La Paz, Bolivia’s capital, the woman underwent surgery to treat the infection and remove dead tissue from her foot. Two weeks after the operation, the woman was able to return to England where she underwent skin grafts.
“I had never felt such pain before. I remember seeing a dolphin out of the corner of my eye, and then it suddenly pounced on me. It wasn’t the cute look of a dolphin I was used to seeing. It had a big beak and a mouth full of sharp teeth,” Claire Bay said.
The accident happened while she was on a seven-month trip in South and Central America. Unfortunately, the 28-year-old’s injury turned her plans upside down after just three months.
