Libero.id - According to Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings the body of a 2-year-old boy dragged into the water by an alligator near a Disney resort has been found on Wednesday at around 15:30.
The boy was vacationing with his parents from Nebraska, a state located in the north of the USA. "It was a tough message to deliver to them," the sheriff said. The announcement came after 15 hours of searching a man-made lake at the Grand Floridian Resort and Spa, in Orlando.
The accident happened like all accidents - in the blink of an eye. The 7- to 8-foot reptile grabbed the boy late Tuesday as he was playing in about a foot of water at the Seven Seas Lagoon at the resort. His father quickly rushed to help his son but wasn’t able to fend off the alligator and received minor injuries to his hand.
The family quickly called 911, which dispatched some 50 wildlife specialists, including trained alligator trappers for a search and rescue effort to a recovery operation, unfortunately to no avail.
Nick Wiley, executive director of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which spearheaded the search, said the American alligator was feeding and likely confused the small child for a dog or a raccoon, as the gators do not typically feed on humans. “People – even small people – are not their typical prey,” he said.
Indeed, the event is a rare spectacle as there have only been 23 recorded fatalities from alligators in the United States since the 1940s.
Opini