Identity released of San Carlos Park woman attacked by alligator

FORT MYERS, Fla. A 71-year-old woman flown to a hospital Sunday after sustaining an alligator bite in the Shadow Wood Preserve neighborhood, the San Carlos Park Fire Protection and Rescue Service District said.

Gene E. Witzel was bitten around 6 p.m. in the lower left leg by a 10-foot alligator on the 1800 block of Cypress Haven Drive, district spokeswoman Alexis Rothring said. She was taken to Lee Memorial Hospital for treatment of arm and leg injuries.

A trapper called to the site captured the gator, which will be killed, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officer Brian Norris told The News-Press.

The alligator attack is the third in Southwest Florida in as many days. A 10-year-old boy is recovering from injuries sustained Friday when he was bitten in the Peace River in Arcadia. And a 51-year-old man remains hospitalized after he was bitten in the arm Friday while diving for golf balls in Rotonda West.