A 9-foot-long alligator in Florida tore the hand off a fisherman Sunday afternoon, FOX35 reported Monday.
The attack happened when the man was fishing in a golf course pond in Leesburg, according to FOX35.
Ron Priest, a witness who saw the attack unfold in his backyard, told FOX35, “While the guy was on the ground, the gator got the guy in the hand, and the two rolled.” (RELATED: Massive Alligator Bites Off Man’s Arm Behind Bar)
Massive alligator attacks Florida man fishing in golf course pond https://t.co/t2TEvUTiaQ
— FOX 35 Orlando (@fox35orlando) March 12, 2024
Two 911 calls, including one by Priest’s wife, were released by Lake County Fire Rescue, FOX35 reported.
In the first call, the caller says, “There is an alligator attacking a man in my backyard,” while during the second call, the dispatcher asks, “Is this regarding a gator attack?”
The caller reportedly responds, “Yes, he took his hand off … Hand is gone!”
Priest told FOX35 that the alligator bit the man when the fisherman was reeling in a fish.
“The gator was after [the] fish, and what we don’t know is if the guy was trying to unhook the fish,” he said.
Priest told the outlet that minutes before a helicopter arrived to airlift the man to an Orlando hospital, the gator released the fish and fisherman and ran back into the water.
“It’s my understanding that [The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission] can’t dispose of a human part,” Priest told FOX35. “It has to be sent to a medical facility, and so, in the odd chance that it could have been re-attached, they drove it to Orlando.”
In accordance with protocol regarding gators that attack humans, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) shot the gator, FOX35 reported.
The FWC encourages the public to move away from gators and provide them with space if encountered, according to FOX35.