A 31-year-old Sacramento woman died after being mauled by an alligator in Florida.
Brittany Clark died June 28 after the attack that happened on a hike with her boyfriend and a friend at Little Big Econ State Forest near Orlando. The incident occurred when Clark and her colleagues took a break to swim in the Econlockhatchee River near the Barr Street trailhead, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
The alligator bit Clark on both arms as she swam in 3 feet of water.
Her boyfriend, Chance Allison, called law enforcement, according to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission spokesperson Chad Weber, who spoke at a news conference on Monday.
“He was trying to get her from the alligator’s mouth,” Weber said.
Clark died from her injuries en route to the hospital.
Wildlife officials caught and euthanized two alligators in the area, which measured 12 feet and 13 feet. Further testing is underway to determine which one was responsible for the attack.
Weber also noted that mating season is coming to an end when alligators become very territorial.
Clark’s family is currently requesting funds to return her remains to California, labeling the death as “a completely bizarre accident.”
At the time, Clark was working for a construction company building roads in Florida. She was a graduate of John F. Kennedy High School in Sacramento.
Her boyfriend told NBC, “She loved her job where she operated a bulldozer running a dirt crew and loved going out on the water every chance she could. Never in a million years would we have seen this nightmare come about.”
Her brother Nate Clark told KCRA that he has been “in shambles” after losing Clark, whom he considered “an amazing sister.”
“I had a very, very hard time believing that it was real life,” he said.
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