Florida Man Dies After Alligator Attack Near Lake Apopka

Steven Hamilton, 71, died after an alligator dragged him into a pond while he was fishing near Lake Apopka in Winter Garden, Florida, authorities said. The attack happened Friday, October 16, according to police accounts reported the following day. Hamilton was fishing along the water’s edge when the alligator pulled him into the water, Winter Garden police said. Fire Chief Jose Gainza said other alligators in the pond made it unsafe for emergency crews to reach him immediately. His body was recovered about two hours later. Police Captain Michael Mason said the alligator involved was killed after the attack. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) took part in capturing the animal. One account described it as nearly 12 feet long and said authorities believed it was responsible for Hamilton’s death; the reports did not detail how that identification was made. Winter Garden police and the FWC are investigating the death. The reports identify the location variously as a pond or shoreline near Lake Apopka and as a park in Winter Garden, without clarifying how those place names relate to one another. The incident was Florida’s second reported fatal alligator...