Woman dies after alligator attack at Florida state park near Orlando

A 31-year-old woman died after an alligator attacked her in the Econlockhatchee River at Little Big Econ State Forest near Orlando, after she and two companions stopped to swim in water about 3 feet deep. The woman had been hiking with her boyfriend and her best friend before the attack near the Barr Street Trailhead in Seminole County.

The attack happened around 1:30 p.m. Sunday, June 28, 2026. The boyfriend tried to pull the woman away from the alligator’s mouth while making the 911 call. She had severe injuries to both arms. She was taken to a hospital as a trauma alert and later died from her injuries. Authorities have not publicly released her name.

Wildlife officials responded by trapping and killing two large alligators in the area. DNA samples from both animals were sent to a lab to determine which one attacked the woman. The Florida Forest Service closed the trailhead after the attack, and state wildlife officials are working with forestry officials on creating a targeted harvest area there so large alligators can be removed more quickly if they are seen again.

The fatal encounter was one of three alligator-related incidents in Central Florida in about a week. On June 28, a boy fishing at Nelson’s Fish Camp in Marion County was bitten on the hand. Earlier in the week, a snorkeler was bitten in the Rainbow River in Marion County. Frank Mazzotti, a University of Florida wildlife ecology professor, said warmer weather and more people spending time near water can increase the chance of encounters, and alligator breeding season is mostly over, though females may still be nesting and acting more defensively.

Serious injuries from alligators are rare in Florida, and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials urge people not to feed alligators, to keep their distance from the water, to swim only in designated daylight swimming areas and to keep pets away from the water. The new death follows another fatal Florida alligator attack in May 2025 at Lake Kissimmee State Park, where a woman was killed in a canoeing incident after an alligator overturned her boat.