Ignacio Blanco Caballero Rivero visits Woodland West Cemetery at least twice a year and says it’s always very quiet, but last time, he saw something that disturbed the peace. “I see an alligator, an alligator basking in the sun in the middle of a pond,” Blanco said.
There, in the middle of a small pond inside the cemetery, was an alligator basking in the sun. “I know we live in Florida and you always have to be careful with it, but it’s different when you see it,” Blanco explains.
Although the signs are near the water, Ignacio Blanco felt that something had to be done. “I contacted the ladies in the office, they were very kind,” he said.
The cemetery management told us they called the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, known as the FWC, to remove the alligators that are considered dangerous. “There is not yet an alligator or a common alligator in Florida … you have to understand and learn to coexist with alligators because they are here and this is their natural habitat,” said George Reynaud, a Fish and Sea official. Florida Deer Commission.
In this link FWC explains how to coexist with alligators: https://myfwc.com/conservation/you-conserve/wildlife/gators/spanish/
It is very much for the public to teach, but they say that it is rare for an alligator to pose a danger if it has lost its natural fear of humans because it has been illegally fed. Once it’s known at that point, you have to permanently remove that alligator or caiman from that lake or canal,” says Reynaud.
If so, you can call 866-392-4286 and they will send a team to remove it permanently.
The team removed the alligator that recently attacked an 85-year-old woman in St. Lucie County. A woman was walking her pet at a community lake when an alligator attacked her pet and when she tried to save it, she ended up losing her life. Incidents involving alligators or alligators are not common, says Reynaud.
According to the FWC, between 1948 and 2021 only 26 of the 442 bites observed in the state resulted in human deaths; including 2-year-old boys who played on the beach at Disney’s Lake in 2016. “When Orlando happened, my child was the same age,” says Ignacio Blanco.
The FWC says most bites can be prevented by staying away from places where we know the alligator is. “If you have a pet, always keep it on a leash and safe from the water, because if it is on the beach or if you send the pet into the water to swim it can attract an alligator or a caiman, because it represents the natural prey of an alligator or an alligator,” explains Reynaud.
While the cemetery is being treated, it has not been determined that the alligator was large enough or presented a risk to the community to not be moved. Ignacio Blanco says that he wants everything to be focused on people. “For what they know, maybe not an alligator,” Blanco said.
Usually an alligator or alligator must be removed at least 4 feet. Saint Lucia was about 11 feet tall.
