ORLANDO, Fla. — A landscaper at Orlando International Airport had more than weeds to contend with Wednesday.
He was attacked by an 8-foot-long alligator as he was doing landscaping work.
Phillip Letner was weed whacking around a pond Wednesday morning. His boss said a gator came up behind him and latched onto his leg.
Letner took action with the only thing he had in his hands.
"He was apparently beating it with a weed eater to get it off of him," said Jeanette Aylor with Aristocuts Lawn and Garden Service.
Once he got away from the 300-pound gator, Letner called 911.
Aylor said Letner didn't have an exact address so he walked two ponds over to an office building.
"He was bleeding, mostly a lot of pain," Aylor said.
Letner is going to be OK and is staying overnight at a hospital.
"He was a very healthy alligator, he's been eating well out here," said Officer Steve McDaniel of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation.
The gator had to be euthanized because it did not show any fear of people.
Officials said it could be because tourists leaving the airport or someone has fed him in the past.
WFTV
