A California couple has recounted their harrowing experience of witnessing and attempting to prevent a fatal crocodile attack on a 28-year-old man while on vacation in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Jamie Yetter and her fiancé Chris Bury, vacationing at the Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa, heard screams on Friday around 6:30 p.m. and rushed to investigate.
Initially believing the man, identified as Irving, was caught in a rip current, the couple soon realized he was being attacked by a large crocodile and dragged into the ocean. Bury attempted to throw a life preserver to Irving, who was reportedly in shock and unable to reach it. A Good Samaritan provided a kayak, and Bury paddled out without oars in an effort to reach the victim.
"There were no oars. There was really nothing at the beach at all to help," Bury told NBC4. "We were just scrambling, trying to do what we could. I was on the kayak right when he got pulled under."
Yetter described the crocodile as immense, stating its head was as long as her torso and its tail thicker than her legs. Despite their efforts, the crocodile dragged Irving under, and he was killed.
The victim's body was recovered approximately 12 hours later on Saturday morning. Yetter told Surfer.com that resort staff had not warned guests about the potential dangers in the water. While she noticed signs for jellyfish and stingrays, she missed a crocodile warning symbol, mistaking it for an iguana.
"They didn’t tell anyone it was dangerous," Yetter said. "They didn’t tell us we shouldn’t go swimming. Even the next morning, I went down to the ocean. I assumed the beach would be closed."
According to Yetter, the beach was not closed the following morning, and there were no specific no-swimming signs posted. The suspected crocodile was captured by police, and by Saturday morning, beachgoers had returned to the shoreline.
This incident occurred near the site of a previous crocodile attack in 2022 that injured two tourists. The Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort and Spa has not yet issued a comment on the recent attack.
