79-year-old hospitalized after alligator attack at Florida golf course community

By Rebekah Riess and Zoe Sottile, CNN

(CNN) — A 79-year-old Florida man was bitten by a nearly 7-foot-long alligator Thursday morning at a golf course in Naples, according to local authorities.

The man told deputies he was on a walk at the Forest Glen and Golf Course community, where he lives, shortly after 5:00 a.m. Thursday when an alligator came up and bit him in the leg, according to a Facebook post from the Collier County Sheriff’s Office.

“I’m bleeding. I don’t know how bad it is. It’s profuse,” the man told a 911 dispatcher, according to an audio recording of the call. “There’s a lot of skin ripped off I can see, probably some muscle.”

“Go figure. Out for a walk to stay healthy,” the 79-year-old joked.

A responding police officer gave the man first aid and he was flown to a local hospital via medical helicopter for treatment, according to the Facebook post.

A second responding deputy spotted the alligator leaving the scene and kept watch on the reptile, which was later trapped and removed from the golf course community. According to the sheriff’s office, the alligator is a 6 foot 9 inch female.

The office urged residents to be cautious around bodies of water and vegetation where alligators may nest, as it is currently alligator mating season.

“Alligators are most active between dusk and dawn, so plan accordingly to reduce the chances of running into them,” the sheriff’s office said.

Florida is home to around 1.3 million alligators across all of the state’s 67 counties, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. So-called “nuisance alligators” – those that are over 4 feet in length and believed to pose a threat to people, pets or property – are removed and killed by contracted trappers.

In 2022, there were 11 recorded alligator bites on humans in the state, with nine classified as “major” bites and two classified as “minor,” according to the commission. None were fatal.

Last month, a Florida man lost his arm after being bitten by a 10-foot alligator. And in March, another Florida resident was bitten by one of the reptiles at his door.

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