70-year-old man tried to help woman killed by alligators in Englewood, according to 911 call

Audio from a 911 call reveals more details about an alligator attack in Englewood that left an 80-year-old woman dead.

In the 911 call, a 70-year-old man explains to the operator his efforts to rescue her, and it nearly cost him his life.

“I think I’m going to have a heart attack,” said the man in the 911 call.

The man did not have a heart attack.

Alligators attacked Rose Marie Wiegand, 80, at the Boca Royale Golf and Country Club in Englewood on Friday after she fell into the water near her home.

The man who called 911 says he tried to get to her and went into the water after he saw her fall in.

He was playing golf and told the dispatcher that Wiegand was walking on the edge of the water when it happened.

He was overwhelmed and struggling to breathe after seeing her go under the water.

“She fell in she was screaming I tried to get to her, and she went under I just couldn’t find her. Oh God, my chest hurts. I’m 70 years old,” said the man on the 911 call. “Oh, I wish I could’ve gotten to her.”

Neighbors in the community tell us they’re shocked this happened so close to home.

Alligator attacks are rare in Florida. Only 26 people died from a bite between 1948 and 2021.