South Carolina Ping 
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Posted on 07/30/2016 8:56:08 AM PDT by upchuck
Alligator responsible for death of woman who was reported missing from a senior facility in West Ashley was found in a nearby retention pond Wednesday. Authorities continue to look into her death. Alligator responsible for death of woman who was reported missing from a senior facility in West Ashley was found in a nearby retention pond Wednesday. Authorities continue to look into her death. FILE/LEROY BURNELL/STAFF × A 90-year-old woman’s death this week is the first alligator-related fatality in state history, according to the S.C. Department of Natural Resources.
Bonnie Walker was reported missing Wednesday morning from Brookdale Charleston, the West Ashley assisted-living facility where she was a resident. Her body was found in a retention pond behind the property a few hours later.
The Charleston County Coroner’s Office ruled her death accidental. The cause was “multiple sharp and blunt force injuries” consistent with those made by an alligator.
Robert McCullough, a spokesman for DNR, confirmed Friday afternoon that the case was the first time an alligator-related incident in the state had turned fatal.
“It’s the first one as far as we’ve been keeping records,” he said.
Agency staff completed a necropsy on the alligator and confirmed it was involved in Walker’s death. They turned it over to the coroner’s office.
“The injuries are consistent with those which could be inflicted by an alligator and our investigation has confirmed that an alligator was involved in the decedent’s death,” said Coroner Rae Wooten.
Investigators believe Walker slipped and fell down a steep embankment and landed in the water, attracting the alligator’s attention.
She was reported missing from the Brookdale Charleston on Charlie Hall Boulevard around 7:40 a.m. Wednesday. Police divers recovered her body from the pond shortly before 11 a.m.
Alligators range throughout the Southeast, including Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, Mississippi and Texas, according to Florida State University. Florida and Louisiana have the largest populations with around 1.5 million alligators each.
While alligators are highly territorial and have been known to attack, fatalities are relatively rare.
Excerpted.
Read entire article here.
Sorry the first paragraph is messed up.
So far, police are saying this is just an alligation.
I hope she was not conscious after falling.
Sad - I hope this poor woman did not suffer.
Not a fan of large predators in areas with people and pets, particularly if the people are slow moving. Hard to zig-zag when beating retreat with a walker. There are thousands of those beasts in the ponds of the retirement communities all over FL and SC. Poor planning. Time to bring back hunting season.
It did remind me of the following song though:
Tony Joe White - A Night in the Life of a Swamp Fox
Because of the lyrics:
And it's looking like we got it made
Til it gets to the part where it says ...That the 'gators got your granny...
Chomp chomp
Winner!
South Carolina has a one month hunting season in the fall, but the number of permits is too small. http://www.dnr.sc.gov/wildlife/alligator/pdf/alligatorhunting2016.pdf
Louisiana is also only a month, but there are fewer restrictions.
LOL! Unless like sharks, they think you are something to eat.
If there are over 3,000,000 alligators in just two states, then I’d say we have too many alligators.
I think about a dozen in the wild would satisfy the wildlife watchers.
LOL! Unless like sharks, they think you are something to eat.
= = = = = = = = = =
Has anyone thought of putting up signs on the ‘gators’ side of the creek warning to not eat the citizens?
How about some fliers saying that their behavior is unacceptable?
How about some midnight basketball or whatever sport (besides human related) to occupy the gators time?
There must be more that can be done other than sitting around and wringing hands.
Maybe we can have a trap and release program and deposit the unwanted gators in the same area BO drops off our unwanted Middle East guests????
Dreadful. RIP.
Also "Polk Salad Annie."
The Song actually should have been named Poke Sallet Annie. Sallet means cooked greens, poke refers to polkweed or polk which grows wild, and Annie was the girl the song was referring to. The song describes the lifestyle of a poor rural Southern girl and her family.
Note: I never knew any of this about the song myself, instead I got this from Wikipedia, which is accurate about somethings. It sounds reasonable as well.
We have alligators here in NC too.
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