Florida is a state well-known for its alligators, which inhabit many of the state’s swamps and wetlands.
Despite their cute appearance, these animals are incredibly dangerous. While they rarely bite people, they may do so for food, as they’re opportunistic feeders.
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Since 1948, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has recorded over 450 alligator bites on people in the state, with 30 of them being fatal.
The FWC has attacks listed through 2022, though there were two attacks last year in Florida — one in Largo and another in Fort Pierce.
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Two of the strangest attacks involved cases from 2007 and 2019. In both cases, the victim was killed by an alligator while trying to evade police in local waterways.
Certain lakes in Florida also present more risk than others, with Lake Okeechobee and Orange Lake being the most gator-infested in the state.
Below is a list of all fatal alligator bites in Florida and how they happened.
| Year | Name | Age | Location | Size of Alligator | Manner of Death |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Sharon Holmes | 16 | Oscar Scherer Park Sarasota County | 11 feet, 3 inches | Killed while swimming in the lake. |
| 1977 | George Leonard | 52 | Peace River Canal Charlotte County | 7 feet | Seized on the arm while swimming in the canal. He died three days later of complications. |
| 1978 | Phillip Rastrelli | 14 | Hidden River Canal Martin County | 11 feet | Killed while swimming across the canal off Bessie Creek. |
| 1984 | Robert Crespi | 11 | Unnamed Canal St. Lucie County | 12 feet, 4 inches | Killed while swimming in the canal. |
| 1985 | Paul Mirabito | 27 | Wellington C27 Canal Palm Beach County | Unrecorded | Killed while swimming in the canal. |
| 1987 | George Cummings III | 29 | Wakulla River Wakulla County | 11 feet | Killed while snorkeling in the river. |
| 1988 | Erin Glover | 4 | Hidden Lake Charlotte County | 10 feet, 7 inches | Killed while standing at the water’s edge. |
| 1993 | Bradley Weidenhamer | 10 | Loxahatchee River Martin County | 11 feet, 4 inches | Killed while wading in the river at Jonathan Dickinson State Park. |
| 1993 | Grace Eberhart | 70 | Lake Serenity Sumter County | Unknown | Found dead at the lake. Cause of death was determined to caused by an alligator, and several were removed. |
| 1997 | Adam Binford | 3 | Lake Ashby Volusia County | 11 feet | Killed while playing along the lake shore. |
| 2001 | Samuel Wetmore | 70 | Unnamed pond Sarasota County | 8 feet, 4 inches | Found dead at a pond near his home in Venice. |
| 2001 | Alexandria Murphy | 2 | Lake Cannon Polk County | 6 feet, 6 inches | Found dead at the lake. |
| 2001 | Robert Steele | 82 | Unnamed wetland Lee County | 10 feet, 9 inches | Killed while walking his dog along the water’s edge near his home in Sanibel on Sept. 11. |
| 2003 | Brian Griffin | 12 | Dead River Lake County | 10 feet, 4 inches | Killed while swimming near a boat ramp. |
| 2004 | Janie Melsek | 54 | Unnamed pond Lee County | 12 feet, 3 inches | Seized by an alligator while landscaping near the water’s edge. Died of complications from the bite afterward. |
| 2004 | Michelle Reeves | 20 | Lee Memorial Health Park Lee County | 7 feet, 11 inches | Killed while swimming in a retention pond. |
| 2005 | Donald Owen | 56 | Six Pound Pond Polk County | 9 feet, 8 inches | Found dead at the pond near Lakeland. |
| 2005 | Kevin Murray | 41 | Unnamed Canal Charlotte County | 12 feet, 2 inches | Killed while swimming at the canal in Port Charlotte. |
| 2006 | Yovoy Suarez-Jimenez | 28 | North New River Canal Broward County | 9 feet, 6 inches | Found dead along the canal in Sunrise. |
| 2006 | Judy Cooper | 42 | East Lake Woodlands Pinellas County | 9 feet, 6 inches | Found dead in an unnamed canal in Oldsmar. |
| 2006 | Annmarie Campbell | 23 | Ocala National Forest Lake County | 11 feet, 5 inches | Killed while snorkeling in Juniper Run. |
| 2007 | Justo Padron | 36 | Miccosukee Indian Reservation Miami-Dade County | 9 feet, 4 inches | Killed while trying to evade police by swimming across a pond at the reservation. |
| 2015 | James Okkerse | 61 | Blue Spring Run Volusia County | 12 feet, 6 inches | Killed while snorkeling in Orange City. |
| 2016 | Lane Graves | 2 | Seven Seas Lagoon Orange County | 7-8 feet | Killed while playing along the shoreline. Two alligators were removed. |
| 2018 | Shizuka Matzuki | 47 | Silver Lakes Rotary Nature Park Broward County | 12 feet, 4 inches | Killed while walking her dogs along the water’s edge of an unnamed lake. |
| 2019 | Jardan Battle | 31 | Retention Pond Lee County | 10 feet, 3 inches | Killed while trying to evade police by swimming across the pond in Fort Myers. |
| 2022 | Sean McGuiness | 49 | Taylor Park Pinellas County | 8-10 feet | Killed while retrieving golf frisbees. Two alligators were removed. |
| 2022 | Rose Weigand | 80 | Boca Royale Golf Course Community Sarasota County | 8 feet, 11 inches 7 feet, 7 inches | Killed while gardening at her home. Two alligators were removed. |
| 2023 | Sabrina Peckham | 41 | Local waterway Pinellas County | 13 feet, 8 inches | Found dead in a nearby waterway. Remains were recovered by deputies. |
| 2023 | Gloria Serge | 85 | Spanish Lakes Fairways St. Lucie County | 10 feet | Her dog was attacked while on a walk. She was pulled into the water while trying to rescue the dog. |
The best way to keep safe from an alligator attack is to avoid them entirely.
To keep safe from alligator attacks, the University of Florida offers these tips:
- Don’t feed wild alligators (it’s illegal): It can make the gators associate humans with food and lose their natural fear of people.
- Don’t throw fish scraps in trash cans: Such scraps can unintentionally attract gators looking for an easy snack.
- Follow directions on signs: Don’t go swimming anywhere outside of posted swimming areas.
- Swim during daylight hours: Alligators are most active at night, so daytime is probably a safer option.
- Keep an eye on children and pets: Never allow small children to play unattended near the water and avoid letting your pets too close to the shoreline, as they may resemble the reptiles’ natural prey.
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