A Treasure Coast man remains hospitalized in serious condition after a gator attack on Monday.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says Robert Bassett of Palm City was riding on a bike trail inside Halpatiokee Regional Park in Stuart, when he fell off the bike and wound up in a stream.
Charles Shannon says he came upon Bassett while the man was struggling with the alligator.
“He was saying, 'help me get out of the water.' He was pretty far down, so I was able to get down there with the help of this young man that hold me. I was able to drag him out of the water.”
Bassett suffered bites to his leg and torso and was flown to the hospital.
A trapper relocated the 8 and a half foot female gator to an alligator farm in Fort Drum.
In a twist of irony, Halpatiokee is a Seminole Indian word meaning Alligator Water, according to the county’s website.
Click Here for more.