ENGLEWOOD, Fla. – An elderly Florida woman died late Friday after falling into a lake and being grabbed by two alligators, authorities said.
The incident happened in a pond at Boca Royale Golf and Country Club in Englewood, south of Sarasota, Sarasota sheriff’s officials said. The woman, who has not been identified and whose age was not released, was seen falling into a lake by the golf course near her home and struggling to stay afloat, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office.
“While in the water, two alligators were observed near the victim and eventually grabbed her while she was in the water,” according to a news release.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission responded to capture and remove the alligators from the lake, officials said. No cause of death has been determined.
The sheriff’s office is working with the FWC and the medical examiner’s office to investigate the incident and determine the cause of death, sheriff’s department spokesman Doug Johnson wrote in an email to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
FWC spokeswoman Melody Kilborn said it was unclear whether alligators were involved in the incident, only that they were observed near the body. The two alligators, one 8 feet 10 inches and the other 7 feet 7 inches, were pulled from the lake shortly after the incident.
Boca Royale Golf and Country Club is a gated community in southern Sarasota County that is about 1,000 acres and includes homes, lakes, golf and nature preserves, according to its website.
No relief from the heat: Without air conditioning in many homes, residents of these cities are suffocating
6-year-old Colorado boy dies after being bitten by a rattlesnake: What you should know if bitten
Fatal alligator attacks are rare in Florida, although the creatures are found throughout the state. The FWC says there are an average of eight unprovoked alligator attacks per year that require medical treatment. From 1948 to 2021, there were 442 unprovoked alligator bite incidents in the state, 26 of which resulted in death.
The story continues
In June, a man searching for a Frisbee in the water along the shore of a lake in Largo, Florida, was found dead in a suspected alligator attack.
Contributing: Jordan Mendoza, USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on the Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Florida woman dies after falling into lake, alligators grab her
Add Comment