Lindsay Bull Utah alligator handler saved by parent, Donnie Wiseman during a 5 year old’s birthday party at Scales and Tails petting zoo after predator drags her into pool.
A Utah alligator handler is lucky to be alive after a bystander stepped in and helped wrestle off the wild predator after live video showed her being yanked into a pool during a kids’ party. Cause what kid doesn’t want to see a grown woman eaten alive?
Scales & Tails Utah employee Lindsay Bull, 31, was filmed Saturday entering an enclosed tank to feed the 8½-foot predator at the petting zoo, as young kids and their parents stood watching, inches away.
As soon as she entered, the 150-pound reptile, named Darth Gator, appeared to try to leave the enclosed area, only to violently snap down on Bull’s left hand as she tried to push him back.
‘Hey, we got trouble here!’ one of the parents yelled out as Bull was pulled into the water and spun around in a premonition of a death roll.
Despite the clear danger, 48-year-old newlywed and parent, Donnie Wiseman leaped into action within seconds, again yelling out, ‘Hey, we got trouble!’
‘What do I do?’
He then jumped into the water and onto the back of the gator, pinning it down to stop it further rolling or thrashing around at the 5-year-old’s birthday party at the suburban Salt Lake City attraction.
Yes kids, who knew kids birthday parties could be so much fun?
As kids at the party cried in terror, Wiseman continued to lie on the beast and control its movements, as Bull calmly gave instructions as another parent tried to help free her arm.
More than 90 seconds into the ordeal, the alligator started thrashing around again — with Bull managing to free her hand in the struggle, and another party-goer, Todd Christopher, quickly pulling her to safety.
‘What do I do?’ Wiseman implored as he remained on top of the powerful gator.
Following Bull’s instructions, Wiseman finally managed to run out of the penned-in tank, more than 2½ minutes after the gator snapped down on his handler.
Bull was rushed to a hospital for surgery after being left with severe cuts and broken bones. She later updated in a Facebook update saying that it ‘should result in full use of my hand.’
‘OK, this is gonna be serious,’
She told the “Today” show from her hospital bed Tuesday that the gator ‘really bit down.’
‘And that’s when I realized, OK, this is gonna be serious,’ she told the show — calling Wiseman ‘a hero.’
Wiseman — who was with his stepson and new wife — told KUTV he assumed police would have had to come and shoot the alligator had they not been able to escape.
‘Once I knew things were under control and EMTs were coming, I went out and smoked a cigarette, honestly,’ he said.
You and I of course would have run out and smoked the good shit.
Scales & Tails Utah responding to the potentially deadly incident, called it the ‘sort of event that we hope never happens,’ even with the ‘inherent risks that we as the staff accept.’
Define heroism?
‘These gentlemen could have stayed in the safety zone as most of us would, but instead jumped into the situation, of their own volition, and helped secure the alligator,’ the attraction said of the parents’ ‘heroism.’
Owner, Shane Richins told KSL, ‘We never expect someone to jump in like that, but we’re super grateful they did.’
Adding, ‘They probably saved her arm and possibly her life.’
Do you suppose?
