Overview
- The fatal attack occurred Sunday when a 31-year-old woman swimming near the Barr Street Trailhead in the Little Big Econ State Forest was bitten, transported as a trauma alert and later died at a hospital.
- Responders removed two large alligators from the Seminole County scene for testing and investigation after an extended on-site operation by FWC, the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office and a contracted nuisance trapper.
- On Saturday an 8-foot-7-inch alligator bit a juvenile who was fishing at Nelson’s Fish Camp in Umatilla and that animal was subsequently killed by officials.
- Earlier on June 21 a snorkeler in the Rainbow River was bitten, was treated at a hospital and has since been released, bringing the cluster to three reported attacks in seven days.
- FWC stresses public safety steps such as never feeding alligators, swimming only in designated areas during daylight, keeping pets away from water, and reporting threatening animals to the Nuisance Alligator Hotline at 866-FWC-GATOR as trapping and testing continue.