Horror as mom's leg is savaged by an 8ft ALLIGATOR as she swam in a river - as she reveals the incredible way she escaped

A Florida female is counting her blessings aft what was expected to beryllium a refreshing dip successful a section stream that ended successful a sadistic alligator attack. 

Rachel Thompson was going done her regular greeting regular of yoga and jogging erstwhile she went down to nan Hillsborough River adjacent her Temple Terrace home.

As she sewage retired of nan river, she discovered nan alligator and was instantly nether attack.

'The infinitesimal that I saw his head, it was conscionable a fraction of a 2nd from maine seeing his caput and him grabbing my leg,' Thompson said.

Thompson tried everything she knew to effort and extremity nan gator: grabbing a stone and punching it. The gator attacked her further until she made an astonishing escape.

She slow realized she was opening to wane successful her resistance. 

'I realized arsenic difficult arsenic I was trying to propulsion I was losing ground,' she told Bay News 9. 

'He was managing to still summation crushed and gradually propulsion maine further toward nan halfway of nan stream toward deeper water,' she added. 

Thompson's mode of flight was shocking but effective. 

'In desperation, I conscionable reached my hands to either broadside of his jaws and I pried them open.' 

Thompson was fortunate to beryllium recovered by her boy and yet was taken to nan nearest infirmary by a neighbor.

Doctors saw Thompson's limb was successful bad style and were worried astir a imaginable infection.

She was fixed room to repair nan surgery limb and whitethorn get retired arsenic soon arsenic Saturday.

Thompson remains astatine consequence for an infection but she's grateful to beryllium capable to locomotion distant astatine all. 

'I was not fresh to time off my family,' she said.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is investigating nan attack.

They opportunity that it's uncommon for an alligator to really onslaught a quality aliases airs immoderate threat whatsoever.

Most often attacks tin hap 'when group do not salary adjacent attraction to their surroundings erstwhile moving aliases recreating adjacent water.'