Triathlon coach survives alligator attack in Savannah River

Triathlon coach Jonathan Bruney, 31, survived an alligator attack while training for the Ironman Augusta course in the Savannah River near North Augusta, South Carolina, on August 23.

Bruney was leading a group of athletes through a rehearsal swim when he felt a violent impact on his right side. Initially mistaking the contact for a submerged log, he realized an alligator had clamped onto his upper arm. To prevent the animal from performing a ‘death roll’, Bruney grabbed the alligator’s head and pushed his thumb into its eye, forcing the reptile to release him.

Following the attack, Bruney experienced heavy bleeding. A fellow swimmer used a piece of cord to create a makeshift tourniquet to slow the blood loss until first responders arrived. Doctors reported that while the bite caused significant injury, it primarily damaged the skin rather than muscle or fat.