Florida woman, 85, killed by alligator while trying to rescue dog
an old person Florida Woman killed by 10ft alligator trying to rescue her dog while walking at her retirement community.
The 85-year-old, who has not yet been publicly named, was reportedly assaulted outside of Spanish Lakes Fairways, a Fort Pierce retirement community WPTV.
An elderly woman was walking a dog when an alligator suddenly jumped out and grabbed the pet
Local residents told the outlet that the victim was walking her dog when the reptile suddenly jumped out of the water and grabbed the pooch.
She tried to save the dog, but the pet was quickly pulled under the water, CBS News reports.
The dog somehow managed to survive the attack, but its owner was ultimately killed by the alligator.
Authorities only “recovered” the body after Robert Lilly, an alligator wrangler, was called in to capture the giant reptile.
Florida woman, 85, was killed in an alligator attack while walking a dog in a senior citizens’ community: pic.twitter.com/zkl1Fy3fpr
— Local 12/WKRC-TV (@Local12) February 21, 2023
“It was definitely a fight,” said the alligator catcher, recalling the alligator’s capture. “[We] caught him on the ground. He never showed up. He stayed down the whole time.”
Subdued by Animal Wrangler, Alligator took six officers to carry him to the back of the pickup truck
Photos show Lilley somehow taming the alligator, as well as other shots of officers helping carry the reptile.
“We were able to teach him a second hook and a hard line so we could get him up,” Lilley explained.
It ended up taking six people to load the alligator into the back of a pickup truck, with experts estimating the predator is at least 10 to 11 feet long and weighs between 600 and 700 pounds.
Meanwhile, the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office was reportedly forced to close several roads in the area as they opened an investigation into the woman’s death.
Alligator Attacks: How Common Are They? And how many people are really killed by alligators each year?
While alligators are reportedly not an uncommon sight in the area, neighbors say they’ve never seen such an attack before.
However, it wasn’t the only alligator incident reported this week. On Sunday, a 4-foot alligator was removed from Brooklyn’s Prospect Park Lake, in an area known for small children.
Explaining why an alligator landed in New York City, Meghan Lalor, a Parks Department representative, said the alligator was likely an unwanted pet whose owners decided to release it into public waters.
Gator attacks are uncommon but not entirely unheard of.
According to Florida Fish and Wildlife, between 1948 and 2021, there were more than two dozen deaths and 376 injuries in 442 unprovoked attacks.
According to the University of Florida, alligators account for less than 6 percent of fatal crocodile attacks worldwide (IUCN). CrocDocs.
A majority of these attacks occurred while the person was swimming, wading, or standing near water (CrocBITE database). Since the majority of Florida’s population lives in close proximity to freshwater and coastal areas, there is an increased potential for conflict.
The Nile crocodile is responsible for more attacks on humans than any other species of crocodile, leading to the misconception that the American crocodile, a federally threatened species in Florida, will behave similarly.
https://theshaderoom.com/85-year-old-florida-woman-killed-by-10-foot-long-alligator/ Florida woman, 85, killed by alligator while trying to rescue dog