"SANIBEL, Fla. — A 74-year-old woman survived an attack by a nearly 10-foot-long alligator (search) that bit her on the leg and arm and dragged her into a lake.
Jane C. Keefer was stable and in good condition at HealthPark Medical Center (search) early Thursday, hospital officials said.
Police said Keefer was attacked at about 8 p.m. Wednesday as she was gardening near the bank behind her home.
Bitten first on the leg, Keefer was able to fight the alligator off, Sanibel Police Chief Bill Tomlinson said.
The reptile lunged at her a second time, biting her arm and dragging her into the water, before her husband, William, was able to help her get away, said Lar Gregory, an investigator with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (search).
Authorities captured the alligator at 10:45 p.m. behind Keefer's home. It will be destroyed.
"This is the kind of gator that will kill you," said trapper John
French.#
Jane C. Keefer was stable and in good condition at HealthPark Medical Center (search) early Thursday, hospital officials said.
Police said Keefer was attacked at about 8 p.m. Wednesday as she was gardening near the bank behind her home.
Bitten first on the leg, Keefer was able to fight the alligator off, Sanibel Police Chief Bill Tomlinson said.
The reptile lunged at her a second time, biting her arm and dragging her into the water, before her husband, William, was able to help her get away, said Lar Gregory, an investigator with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (search).
Authorities captured the alligator at 10:45 p.m. behind Keefer's home. It will be destroyed.
"This is the kind of gator that will kill you," said trapper John
French.#