Published: 21:40 BST, 1 September 2026 | Updated: 21:46 BST, 1 September 2026
A Nevada swimmer needed 38 stitches after being viciously attacked by an otter while swimming near Hidden Beach at Lake Tahoe.
Lynnette Bellin, an infant swim instructor, was in the waters around Incline Village on Sunday morning when she felt a sudden pull from below.
'I just felt something grab me by my leg and pull me under. And it was so powerful. It felt like it was a human,' Bellin told KCRA 3.
'This otter just started coming after me, teeth and claws, and, you know, my only thought was like, I got to get away from this. But it kept following me.'
Bellin, 51, fought off the otter with her hands and feet as she described what felt like five minutes of continuous battle in the water.
'The attack just kept getting more and more aggressive. It was just nothing I'd ever been coached for. Like, what do you do?' Bellin told the outlet.
She attempted to escape onto some rocks but they were too slippery to climb onto and as she yelled in vain for help, the otter continued to intensely circle around her.
'I could just hear him breathing heavy and that's when I was like, there's no way I'm getting back in there,' she said.
Lynnette Bellin, an infant swim instructor, needed 38 stitches after being viscously attacked by an otter while swimming near Hidden Beach at Lake Tahoe
Bellin was covered in blood from head to toe, with scratch and bite marks all over her body after the attack. When she arrived near East Shore Bike Trail, first responders immediately rushed to the scene to give her aid
Bellin continued to climb up the rocks and walked barefoot to the spot she originally came from near East Shore Bike Trail. She was covered in blood from head to toe, with scratch and bite marks all over her body.
'I was scared to death to get back in. Now I'm just freaking out all the people on the bike path because I'm dripping blood everywhere,' said Bellin in an Instagram video.
When she arrived, first responders immediately rushed to the scene to give her aid. Bellin suspects someone she passed on the trail may have called for help after spotting her.
She was taken to the emergency room where she received 38 stitches and a rabies shot.
