Diver Miraculously Survives Vicious Alligator Attack: ‘Somehow Ripped My Arm Out and Not Off’

Will Georgitis was attacked in South Carolina on April 15 while going for a dive in the Cooper River to look for fossils.

A South Carolina diver is recovering after he miraculously survived a vicious alligator attack that left him pinned underwater.

According to the Associated Press, Will Georgitis was attacked in South Carolina on April 15 after going for a scuba dive to look for fossils.

He told The Post and Courier that after surfacing from his dive due to limited air, he spotted the alligator nearby in the Cooper River.

"It made a beeline right at me," he told the outlet, explaining that he instinctively threw up his arm when the alligator lunged for his head.

With the alligator's jaw clenched onto his arm, Georgitis decided to wrap his free hand and legs around the reptile’s body but the 6 feet 2 inches diver was unable to lock his ankles together and get a firm grip.

Related: Fisherman’s Hand Bitten Off After Being Attacked by Alligator on Golf Course: ‘His Hand Is Gone’

Georgitis then tried to use his screwdriver to stab the animal's eye, however, the alligator immediately shook him and pinned him to the bottom of the 50-feet-deep river.

"I knew I was going to die right then and there," Georgitis told The Post and Courier, adding that he continued to stab the gator’s gum with the screwdriver until his scuba tank ran dry.

In desperation, he decided he would try to free himself by placing his feet on the alligator's body and pushing hard until his arm ripped off in its jaws.

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“I put my feet up against him just launched back as hard as I possibly could and somehow ripped my arm out and not off,” Georgitis told Good Morning America.

The gator’s teeth then scraped over Georgitis’ arm, enabling the diver to break free and swim to the surface, where a friend was waiting with a boat.

Related: Florida Man Recalls Crocodile Attack in the Everglades: ‘I Didn't Feel Any Panic'

Georgitis was left with a broken bone in his lower right arm, a dislocated bone and an inserted metal plate with nine screws. He may also need more surgery and faces around six months of recovery.

He is now warning other divers to take care when exploring the Cooper River and other waterways in South Carolina, which has an estimated 100,000 alligators.

Georgitis also told The Post and Courier that his survival had nothing to do with being brave.

"The only thing going through my head was pure fear," he told the outler.

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