Third alligator removed from Cape Coral lake in one year

An alligator had to be removed from a Cape Coral neighborhood after approaching a mother and her children.

It happened on Friday in the Coral Lakes neighborhood in the northeast area of the city. This is the thrid gator removed in the last year.

Not just common in and around Southwest Florida, alligators are also at the top of the food chain.

“Part of this is preserve, and we live in Florida. Gators are part of life,” said Erica Abernathy.

Abernathy told WINK News that it’s one thing to live near gators. It’s quite another to have three gator encounters in a single year.

“I was pushing my children in their swings, and I went over to kind of adjust my daughter,” said Abernathy, “and I turned back, and the gator was probably within three feet of us, and it had stopped right at the edge of the water and was very, very intently looking at us, very scary, scary experience.”

Abernathy faced her fear by getting out of there.

“I immediately jumped into action and grabbed my kids out of their swing; we came inside. My son was very scared because he knows when Mommy says ‘alligator’ it’s very serious,” said Abernathy.

“I’ve been in Florida for 20 years,” said Nick Abernathy. “I’m essentially an adopted Florida man, and you know, we become desensitized to this stuff every once in a while, especially when it’s living in your own backyard, but when it’s that close to your actual backyard, that’s where things get pretty personal and scary.”

The family called the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, who came and took the gator away, but the family still feels uneasy with the idea that a fourth gator could soon make the area its hunting grounds.

If there is an alligator near your home that you believe could be a threat or danger to your family or pets, call the FWC alligator hotline at 866-392-4286.