SEMINOLE COUNTY, FL – A 31-year-old homeless man in Florida is now being treated in a hospital after losing a large part of his arm to an alligator attack. The man was swimming in Lake Monroe, Seminole County, around 2 a.m. on Sunday when the incident occurred, according to the state’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
In an effort to save his life, surgeons at a nearby hospital had to amputate his arm at the elbow.
This unfortunate event could have been avoided if the man had heeded the warning of a local fisherman. John Lawson, who was boating in the lake that night, noticed the swimmer from a distance. When he tried to alert the swimmer of the potential dangers in the dark water, the swimmer assured him he was okay.
Lawson had concerns that the swimmer could either drown, get hit by a boat, or fall prey to the lake’s many alligators. After a while, the fisherman’s wife convinced him to call the police. However, the swimmer refused help from the officers who arrived at the scene, continuing to swim in the lake. Later, he became a victim of one of the lake’s many alligators.
Lake Monroe is home to more than 1,200 alligators, spanning over 8,771 acres, according to FWC researchers. The reasons that led the man to swim in such hazardous waters remain unknown.