LAKE WACCAMAW, N.C. (WBTW) — North Carolina wildlife officials confirmed Tuesday that a 12-year-old girl was hurt last week in an incident involving a 12-foot-long alligator at Lake Waccamaw in Columbus County.
T
he girl suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries
Friday evening while playing with a group of other children in the lake,
police said in a Facebook post
. It’s unclear whether she was bitten or clawed. Police said the children were playing in about 4 feet of water when the alligator surfaced in the area where they had been.
Alicia Wassmer, an expert alligator biologist with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, said Tuesday that such incidents are rare in the state.
“Although the alligator’s behavior was unusual, it was not predatory in nature,” Wassmer said. “As such, it is considered an ‘incident’ and not an ‘attack.’
Wassmer said the alligator was euthanized after the incident and a necropsy was conducted to help authorities learn more about wildlife and environmental health.
“Anytime an alligator makes contact with a person, our protocol is to euthanize it regardless of the circumstances,” she said. “Our officers responded quickly and worked with the community to identify and dispatch the alligator.”
Wassmer said North Carolina is part of a new, multistate program called
GatorWise
, which offers guidance and resources for co-existing with alligators.
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