SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials released new details Monday about the deadly alligator attack that killed a 31-year-old Orlando woman in Seminole County.
The woman was attacked around 1:30 p.m. Sunday while swimming in the Econ River near the Barr Street Trailhead.
During a news conference, FWC said investigators have captured two alligators — one measuring 12 feet and the other 13 feet long — as they work to determine which animal was involved in the attack. Officials said DNA testing is underway..
According to FWC, the woman had been walking the trail with her boyfriend and best friend before they decided to swim in shallow water in the river.
The nearly 12-minute 911 call captures a witness telling a dispatcher, “Somebody got bit by a gator. Bad. Real bad. Please hurry.”
As the call continued, they told the dispatcher, “She’s losing a lot of blood.” Witnesses were able to move the woman away from the alligator.
FWC said the alligator bit both of the woman’s arms. The woman was taken to a nearby hospital, where she died from her injuries.
Officials said they cannot say exactly why the attack happened.
“With low water levels that we have, we are coming into the end of mating season. Alligators become very territorial. So it’s any number of things. It’s really hard to speculate and pinpoint what the exact reason was,” FWC Public Information Officer Chad Weber said.
FWC also said, “It’s hard to speculate the exact intentions of the gator. Being this time of year, what we know from gator activity, they are highly territorial after mating season,” FWC Investigator Lt. Grant Eller said.
The Florida Department of Agriculture website states the Barr Street Trailhead will remain closed until further notice.
FWC has not released the victim’s name because officials are still working to notify out-of-state family members.
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