An elderly woman has been killed by two alligators after falling in a pond near her home in Florida.
The woman, who has not been named, is believed to have been grabbed by two alligators before she was able to climb out of the pond located at the Boca Royale Golf and Country Club in Englewood.
She was seen falling into the water on Friday evening and "struggled to stay afloat" according to Sarasota County Sheriff's Office.
In a statement, the force said: "While in the water, two alligators were observed near the victim and ultimately grabbed her while in the water." The woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission have captured and removed the two alligators from the pond, with officials confirming that one stood at eight and 10 inches and the second was seven foot and seven inches in length.
A statement from the FWC read: "Over the last 10 years, Florida has averaged eight unprovoked bites per year that are serious enough to require professional medical treatment.
"The frequency of these serious bites is variable but there has not been a significant trend in the past 10 years.
"The likelihood of a Florida resident being seriously injured during an unprovoked alligator incident in Florida is roughly only one in 3.1 million."
Although alligator fatalities are rare in the United States, on average to be one per year across the country, the latest incident becomes the third death to occur over the last three months.
In June, a man was dragged into a pond by an 11-foot reptile near Myrtle Beach in South Carolina, the first in the county since May 2020.
A Horry County Police Department statement read that rescuers "determined that an alligator took hold of a neighbour who was near the edge of a retention pond and retreated".
Sean Thomas McGuiness, 47, was identified as the victim in May after his body was found with three limbs missing in Largo, Florida.
McGuiness is believed to have been attacked when he went to retrieve frisbees from a lake at John S. Taylor Park in the evening in order to resell.
The victim was known for entering the body of water despite 'No Swimming' signs posted around the lake. Mr McGuinness' was discovered by a dog walker the following day.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission had also gathered data regarding the number of unprovoked bites on people since 1948.
It found that there has been 442 incidents over the last 73 years, with 139 'minor' bites in which "the victims' injuries were superficial and required no treatment or only first aid".
The research, which was last collated in November 2021, only 26 people had been killed by an alligator in Florida with the most recent coming in April 2019.
