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Martin County, FL - A 27-year-old woman was hospitalized after an alligator allegedly attacked her while swimming in the St. Lucie River on Wednesday.
According to the Martin County Sheriff’s Office, the incident occurred near the South Fork River, close to Southwest Linden Street, where the woman and her boyfriend were boating.
Authorities said the woman was standing in waist-deep water with her dog when an alligator allegedly bit her hand and wrist.
The alligator pulled her underwater but released her shortly after.
The woman's boyfriend quickly rushed her to the boat ramp at Charlie Leighton Park.
She was airlifted to a hospital as a safety measure, although her injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.
Neither her boyfriend nor the dog was injured during the attack.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has been dispatched to the scene, and officials are waiting for their trapper to locate the alligator responsible for the attack.
The animal has not yet been captured.
This incident follows a similar tragedy in May, when a woman was fatally bitten by an alligator after being thrown from her canoe into Lake Kissimmee.
Cynthia Kay Diekem, 61, was attacked by an 11-foot alligator, resulting in a fatal injury to her torso.
Florida is home to around 1.3 million alligators, with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reporting an average of eight unprovoked alligator attacks per year.
Despite the rarity of such incidents, experts continue to urge caution when entering waters inhabited by alligators.