Later, Gator!

Girls' Life, Dec, 2001

Edna Wilks and Amanda Valance, both 15, went for what was expected to be an uneventful swim one evening in Orlando's Lake Conway. Says Edna, "We were floating on boogie boards 30 yards from the shore in water about 15 feet deep. Suddenly, something splashed and squeezed my arm. I looked and saw a snout.

It was an alligator!" The gator took Edna underwater and spun her around like a tornado before letting go. While everyone else swam to shore, Edna's BFF Amanda grabbed her and paddled her to safety. Though Edna's arm was broken and she lost some blood. it could have been worse if Amanda hadn't acted so quickly. "She saved my life," says Edna.