A Florida man got his arm amputated after a giant alligator attacked him outside a Florida bar during the weekend, according to reports.
Local authorities confirmed the incident and said the 23-year-old man survived and was taken to a nearby hospital where it was decided that his arm needs to be cut off due to the severity of the wounds he sustained.
Over the past year, there has been a spate of alligator attacks in Florida, both on its land and waters. While most encounters are not critical, some of them involved fatal ones. In 2022, a Florida man died in an apparent alligator attack while searching for frisbees at a pond. Earlier this year, an elderly woman was killed by an alligator in Florida while walking her dog.
Florida wildlife authorities estimate that there are more than a million alligators living across the Sunshine State. These wild animals are known for living in murky, shallow waters like swamps, lakes, ponds, and rivers. Despite being in their wet habitats, there have been cases of home intrusions and attacks in populated areas by Florida alligators.
There have been multiple alligator attacks across the United States, aside from Florida. Some of these cases involved humans entering the territories of the animals, an event treated by some as a provoked attack.
Florida Bar Alligator Attack
A small alligator swims through the marsh at Orlando Wetlands Park in Christmas, Florida, on March 1, 2023. - The 1650-acre park is a man-made wetland designed to provide advanced treatment for reclaimed water from the City of Orlando and other local cities.
The victim was standing outside the Banditos Bar, which is situated next to a pond, according to The Daily Sun, Insider reported. The incident occurred on Sunday, May 21, where the local newspaper said emergency services were called to the bar at around 1:42 a.m. local time.
It is still unclear how the man ended up in a pond. Yet, he was seen by a witness inside the bar screaming and swimming toward the pond's shoreline.
There no specific number of how many alligators live in Florida. However, it is estimated that 1.3 million alligators can be found in all of Florida's 67 counties, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), as cited by TC Palm news.
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Fatal US Alligator Attacks
Aside from the cases mentioned earlier. There is a myriad of fatal alligator attacks nationwide that have transpired over the past year, in addition to the ones mentioned earlier in this article.
In August 2022, an 88-year-old woman fell into a pond in a gated community in South Carolina's Hilton Head Island, where she was attacked and killed by an almost 10-foot-long alligator, ABC News reported.
In July 2022, an 80-year-old woman also fell victim to an alligator attack after falling into a pond at a golf course in Englewood, Florida. The woman was reportedly attacked by two alligators.
In June 2018, a 47-year-old woman died after being dragged and dismembered by an unspecified number of alligators while walking her dog at a park in Davie, Florida.
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