A family vacation in Cancún, Mexico, took a frightening turn when two dolphins attacked a 10-year-old girl during a supervised swimming experience. British tourist Lexi Yeo was in the water with bottlenose dolphins when the animals began biting and pulling her underwater. Her mother watched from nearby as trainers tried to stop what was happening.
Lexi managed to hold onto a bodyboard while the incident continued. A trainer eventually reached her and helped get her out of the water. Lexi survived with cuts, bruises, and bite wounds, turning a vacation activity she had looked forward to into a frightening experience.
Lexi enters the water during her family vacation
Lexi Yeo was 10 years old when she traveled to Mexico with her family in 2019. During the vacation, she took part in a swimming experience involving bottlenose dolphins at Dolphin Discovery in Cancún. The activity placed visitors in close contact with dolphins under the supervision of trainers. Lexi had reportedly been excited about getting into the water with the animals.
The experience changed suddenly after Lexi entered the water. According to reports from the time, two dolphins began behaving aggressively toward her. The animals moved against her body, bit her, and began pulling her underwater. What had started as a planned tourist activity quickly became a situation in which trainers needed to get the child away from the animals.
Two dolphins begin pulling Lexi underwater
Reports about the incident describe both dolphins becoming involved. Lexi was bitten and pulled below the surface as the encounter continued. Her mother said the animals also rammed or pushed against her daughter. Lexi was surrounded by animals far larger and stronger than she was, leaving her with little control over where they moved.
The trainers attempted to stop the dolphins. Reports from 2019 said the animals initially failed to respond to attempts to call them away from Lexi. This extended the frightening encounter while her mother remained outside the water, watching what was happening.
A bodyboard helps Lexi stay near the surface
During the struggle, Lexi managed to keep hold of a bodyboard. The floating board gave her something solid to grip while the dolphins were moving around her. Reports from the incident repeatedly mention the bodyboard as an important part of how she remained supported in the water until a trainer could reach her.
It would be too strong to say with certainty that the board saved Lexi’s life. No one can know exactly what would have happened without it. What can be said is that the bodyboard provided buoyancy and gave Lexi something to hold onto during a dangerous and confusing situation.
Lexi leaves the water with several injuries
Lexi survived, but she did not leave the encounter without injuries. Reports said she suffered cuts, significant bruising, and bite wounds. The injuries were concentrated around her legs and feet. Photographs published after the incident showed marks left by the encounter.
The injuries also showed that the dolphins had made forceful physical contact with her. Dolphins can look gentle while swimming, but they are powerful animals. A bottlenose dolphin has a strong, muscular body designed to move quickly through water. Close contact can therefore become dangerous when an animal behaves unpredictably.
Dolphin Discovery responds after the incident
Dolphin Discovery reportedly said rough sea conditions had caused distress among the dolphins. Reports from the time also said the company planned to investigate what happened. The explanation came after Lexi’s family raised concerns about how the animals behaved and how the incident had been handled.
TUI, which was connected with the family’s vacation, also responded. A spokesperson said the company was concerned about Lexi’s experience and described incidents of this kind as extremely rare. TUI said it would conduct an internal investigation and contact the family directly.
Dolphins are powerful animals despite their friendly image
Dolphins are often shown as playful and social animals. Their curved mouths can even create an appearance that people interpret as a smile. That familiar image can make it easy to forget that dolphins are large, strong marine mammals capable of causing injuries.
Lexi’s experience provides a clear example. She was not swimming alone with unknown animals in the open ocean. She was taking part in an organized dolphin experience with trainers nearby. Even in that controlled setting, the behavior of the two dolphins changed enough to leave her injured and require an emergency response.
Featured Image: Photo by Rudney Uezu on Unsplash
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