OUT OF CHARACTER

Giant Alligator Pulls Man to His Death

A 12-foot-long alligator attacked the fisherman at a popular pond.

An alligator nearly 12 feet long dragged a man in Winter Garden, Florida, from the shoreline of a pond where he was fishing to his death in the water. Steve Hamilton, 71, was fishing in the late afternoon when the alligator attacked. Emergency crews arrived to rescue Hamilton at about 5.20 p.m., but other alligators hampered their efforts. Hamilton’s body was recovered from the water hours later. Captain Michael Mason of the Winter Garden police department said the alligator had been killed after its fatal attack on Hamilton. He said authorities had not been alerted to any gator sighting on Friday at the pond, which is connected to Lake Apopka, south-west of Orlando. But Mason said the body of water had tons of alligators. “That is not uncommon to see alligators in this part of town.” He encouraged people to be aware of their surroundings. An alligator “looks like it’s docile. It looks like your Florida emblem, but it can be dangerous,” Mason said. Alligator attacks are statistically rare. About 34 have been recorded since 1948.