Steven Hamilton, a 71-year-old resident of Winter Garden , died Friday after a nearly 12-foot alligator attacked him at Lake Apopka's Dr. Bradford Memorial Park. This incident marks the second fatal alligator encounter in Florida during 2026.
The 12-foot predator at Dr. Bradford Memorial Park
Steven Hamilton was fishing on the shore of Lake Apopka around 5 p.m. on Friday when he was targeted by the large reptile. As reported by FOX35, rescue efforts were severely hindered because multiple other alligators were active in the water, preventing emergency crews from reaching Hamilton immediately. his body was eventually recovered by 7 p.m., two hours after the initial attack.
The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) worked alongside local police to investigate the scene. Following the incident, trappers from the FWC captured and killed the alligator responsible for the attack. The park where the incident occurred is located approximately 15 miles northwest of Orlando.
A surge in encounters and the 34 deatths since 1948
This tragedy is part of a worrying trend in 2026, following the June death of 31-year-old Brittany Clark, who was killed by a 13-foot alligator near her home in Oviedo. According to the report, Florida state data indicates that a total of 34 individuaals have been killed by alligators since 1948.
Environmental factors may be driving these dangerous interactions. Crocodile expert Rosie Moore has suggested that drought conditions could be increasing the frequency of encounters between humans and alligators as the animals search for water. Other recent high-profile incidents incude a 61-year-old woman, Cynthia Diekema, who was tipped out of a canoe in May of last year, and an 85-year-old widow dragged from her backyard in 2023.
Rep. Greg Steube's challenge to the American alligator's protected status
The fatalities have sparked a legislative debate led by Republican U .S. Rep. greg Steube. Steube has introduced a resolution urging the U.S. Department of the Interior and the Comptroller General to examine how the American alligator's listing as a "threatened" species impacts the ability of Florida officials to remove nuisance animals from commercial and residential waterways.
Rep. Greg Steube argues that the species has been fully recovered since 1987. He contends that the current protections remain in place primarily to prevent the illegal trafficking and hunting of the American crocodile, which looks similar to the alligator. This legal overlap, he suggests, may be creating bureaucratic hurdles that compromise public safety in alligator-dense regions.
Why Lake Apopka's high alligator population went unwarned
A critical gap in public safety remains regarding how the Winter Garden Police Department and park authorities communicate immediate threats to visitors. Police Capt. Michael Mason noted that authorities were not alerted in advance that an alligator was lurking near the shore, attributing this lack of warning to the fact that Lake Apopka contains "tons of alligators."
While Capt. Michael Mason urged the public to respect wildlife and maintain distance, the incident leaves open the question of whether current waring signs are sufficient. It remains unclear if the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission has a protocol for flagging specific "high-activity" zones within parks to prevent residents like Steven Hamilton from being caught off guard.
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