TAMPA TRIBUNE (Florida) 02 July 05 Alligator Encounter That Left Man Injured Not An `Attack' (Geoff Fox)
Land O' Lakes: The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has classified an alligator incident in Lake Saxon on Sunday night as a ``bite,'' but not an ``attack.''
Commission spokesman Gary Morse said the incident was not considered an attack because ``We don't know what happened, to be perfectly honest.''
The bite left Blake Hutchinson, 19, with a severe infection in both hands. His mother, Linda Hutchinson, said he remained hospitalized at St. Joseph's Children's Hospital in Tampa on Friday.
Linda Hutchinson said doctors might have to do surgery on her son's hands. The 2004 Land O' Lakes High School graduate could lose some feeling and range of motion in his hands.
The Hutchinsons live in Lake Padgett Estates, which is north of State Road 54 off Collier Parkway.
Blake Hutchinson was boating with several friends Sunday night on Lake Saxon when he decided to go for a swim after 11 p.m., his mother said.
She said he was met by the alligator almost as soon as he hit the water and fought the roughly 6-foot-3-inch animal off with his hands.
Blake had been on the lake ``millions of times'' and didn't hesitate to jump in, his mother said. She said her son was unavailable to comment.
``We don't know whether the gator actually attacked him or when he went overboard he wound up on top of the gator, or if the gator was just spooked,'' Morse said.
Linda Hutchinson said she thinks the incident was an attack, and she hopes the alligator is caught.
``What makes it not go after somebody or something else?'' she said. ``I don't want any more incidents. That would just be horrible if something else happened.''
Morse said Friday that a trapper would try to remove the alligator because ``there's a possibility of an aggressive animal out there.'' He said such alligators often make themselves conspicuous.
Trappers who catch alligators skin them and sell the meat and hide.
Because the incident wasn't reported to the Fish and Wildlife Commission until Wednesday, finding the alligator could be difficult because the animals are most active in the summer, he said.
Blake Hutchinson is a criminal justice major at Southwest Florida College. His mother said he also has talked about becoming a ``fresh-water game commissioner.''
For information about alligators, visit the commission's Web site at www.myfwc.com. To report nuisance alligators or alligator attacks, call the commission at (866) 392-4286.
Alligator Encounter That Left Man Injured Not An `Attack'