Man bitten by alligator, seriously injured while swimming in Seminole County lake

By Megan Mellado

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    LAKE MONROE, Florida (WESH) — Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said they were called just before 2 a.m. Sunday about a gator attack at Lake Monroe.

The attack left a man amputated, missing his arm from the elbow down, FWC said.

Lauren Claerbout with FWC said attacks like this are uncommon.

“Alligators are naturally very weary of people, they’re not really looking to harm us in most cases… A lot of cases with alligator bites, a lot of times it’s a case of mistaken identity,” Claerbout said.

Claerbout said gators don’t usually go after people unless they mistake them for food, especially if they’ve been fed by humans in the past.

“When they’re fed, alligators lose their natural weariness of people and instead they learn to associate people with the availability of food,” she said.

Those walking near Lake Monroe on Tuesday said they’ve seen many gators in the lake, but have never had any issues.

“I mean it’s just one of those things you got to look out for living in Florida. They’re all over the place,” someone passing by said.

With an estimated 1.3 million gators in Florida, Claerbout advises to only swim in designated areas and in daylight hours, since gators are more active at night.

If a gator attacks, she said to fight back.

“We hear all the time that the eyes are a sensitive area so poking the alligator in the eyes might release its bite,” Claerbout said.

If you’re concerned about a gator, call FWC at 866-FWC-GATOR. They have nuisance alligator trappers who can help manage them.

If medical help is needed, dial 911 first.

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