Eric Merda had just finished a maintenance job for his sprinkler company when he decided to spend a few days at the Manatee Fish Camp in Myakka City, Florida.
He was swimming for almost three hours in the lake, trying to get back to his van after getting lost. That’s when he looked over and saw the eye of the alligator. The 43-year-old Sarasota, Florida man panicked and tried escaping, but a nearly 7-foot alligator grabbed hold of his forearm and would not let go.
They went under. Then under again. Three times the gator tried to drown him.
A bone poking out of his arm, Merda swam back to the shore, bleeding and scared to death. He was almost ready to give up.
“I was like, ‘Man. I ain’t got nothing to live for. Let’s just lay and die – to hell with it.’” Merda said. “I can’t figure out why I wouldn’t give up. I’m not a quitter. I couldn’t do it.”
Three days trying to find help
Merda spent the next three days trying to find help, as flies swarmed the open wound on his right arm. He would survive by eating flowers and drinking handfuls of the muddy lake water.
He followed power lines, trying to get out of the swamp. Most nights, he slept in water three inches deep.
Merda finally made it to a barbwire fence, where he found a bystander who was able to call for help. The emergency responders cut a hole in the fence and got him into the helicopter to transport him to a hospital.
It was then that the pain really hit. Merda said as the adrenaline wore off and reality set in, he began screaming at the top of his lungs.
“I could see the pain in everybody’s eyes around me,” Merda said. “They actually asked somebody to shut me up at one point.”
Almost two months later, Merda said the biggest readjustment has been dealing with the finances. He had to sell his van to pay for the medical expenses, but his family created an online fundraiser for him as he continues to adjust.
New York:Woman sentenced to 4 months in prison after in-flight fight caused plane to divert
China:Man trapped for two days in hydrogen balloon lands safely 200 miles away
“Many things will change for our sweet Eric. He will no longer be able to do the work he loves, and many other things he loved doing,” Evelyn James, Merda’s aunt, said on the GoFundMe page. “My heart is broken, but we are so thankful he is alive.”
Merda is still able to pick up his 4-year-old son with his other arm and play with him. When his son asks what happened, he tells him that he got in a fight with an alligator. His son smiles and laughs.
After his story has gone viral and gained national media attention, Merda is hoping to use the experience as traction to become a motivational speaker and help others who may feel stuck in life.
“I had to fight my way out of that place, and I’m going to fight my way through the rest of this life.”
