A woman on the trip of a lifetime was left fighting for her life - when a DOLPHIN nearly bit her foot off during a wild swim.<br /><br />Traumatised, Claire Bye, 28, was swimming in a river in Santa Rosa de Yacuma, Bolivia, when a pink river dolphin suddenly sunk it's teeth into her right foot. <br /><br />Claire was rushed to a local hospital a five-minute drive away, where her open wounds were seen to with 32 stitches. <br /><br />After four days her condition went downhill as she battled a potentially life-threatening infection and medics advised she be flown to La Paz, the capitol of Bolivia, for further treatment. <br /><br />After a surgical clean to treat the infection and remove the dead tissue, Claire had to wait another two weeks before she could fly home to the UK. <br /><br />Once back home, she underwent skin flap surgery, where living tissue was transferred from her groin to her foot, at Southmead Hospital, Bristol.<br />Claire, an acoustic consultant from Bedminster, Bristol, said: "I've never felt pain like it. <br /><br />"I remember seeing the dolphin out of the corner of my eye, and then it suddenly lunged at me. <br /><br />''It wasn't the cute looking dolphins were used to seeing, it had a huge beak with a mouthful of spiky teeth. <br /><br />"It felt like it had me for 15 minutes, but apparently it was about 20 seconds before it let go and swam away. <br /><br />"They did the best they could, but I caught an infection that began to spread up my leg. <br /><br />"I honestly thought I'd lose my foot, or potentially my life." <br /><br />On 3rd January 2023, only three months into her trip, Claire's travels were cut short by the life-changing injuries. <br /><br />They were led by an experienced tour guide, and joined by a group of fellow tourists.<br /><br />The group stopped at the river and spent time swimming and playing with the wild pink river dolphins. <br /><br />Claire said: "I saw one child try to pick up a dolphin, which made me feel uneasy, so I decided to get out of the water and onto the pontoon. <br /><br />"That's when the dolphins started to turn aggressive, and a few people got out of the water with scrapes on their legs where they'd been bitten."<br /><br />Claire decided not to go back into the water, but instead opted to play with the dolphins with a water bottle, as demonstrated by their tour guide, from the safety of the pontoon. <br /><br />Claire accidentally dropped the water bottle, so she hopped into the shallow water to retrieve it. <br /><br />Moments later, a dolphin lunged at Claire and bit down on her right foot. <br /><br />Claire explained: "The water was brown, and I was facing away so I couldn't actually see it bite down on my foot.<br /><br />Her partially severed foot poured with blood, with the tendons and bones exposed. <br /><br />A bystander took off his t-shirt to tie around her foot to stem the bleeding, and Claire was carried to a nearby car and driven to the local hospital. <br /><br />Investigations are currently underway to determine why the dolphins attacked, as other people have people have been bitten while swimming in the river since, despite there now being warning signs.
