Popular spring break activity lands American tourist in hospital: ‘Felt like I was in a car accident’

A popular spring break activity landed a Tennessee woman in the hospital after a freak accident left her feeling as though she had been struck by a car. 

Cierra Stockard was enjoying a tropical vacation with friends on March 16 when she purchased a dolphin-encounter excursion at Dolphin Cove, Jamaica, the mother of two told “Good Morning America.” The experience, known as the “Dolphin Royal Swim,” allows visitors to have a hands-on encounter with the marine mammals, according to the organization’s website.   

The excursion allows visitors to interact with the dolphins as they “foot-push you to then splash into the water at maximum speed,” the website states. Tourists are given the opportunity to stand on the backs of dolphins for a photo opportunity.

Stockard told GMA that the impact of the dolphin’s fin felt as though she had been “in a car accident.” (iStock)

Stockard was rushed to a Montego Bay hospital, where she suffered from a “grapefruit-sized hematoma” and required emergency surgery. Stockard told GMA she has sickle cell anemia, a disorder of the blood that affects a person’s hemoglobin, according to the National Institutes of Health. 

Stockard traveled home to Tennessee on March 24 – eight days after the incident – and required additional treatment from a nearby hospital. 

An aerial view of Montego Bay, Jamaica. (Will Twort/Jamaica Tourist Board/dpa)

“Luckily, I’m in stable condition and [I’m not] all the way on my deathbed,” Stockard said. 

Dolphin Cove did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.