Fire Rescue crews responded to the entrance to Everglades National Park Sunday afternoon
A man who was bitten by an alligator in South Florida had to be airlifted to a hospital on Sunday.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue was dispatched to the medical emergency at Everglades National Park at 4:55 p.m., the agency confirmed.
According to WSVN-TV, radio transmissions from first responders indicated that an adult male had been bitten by an alligator.
First responders located the injured victim before he was airlifted to Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson South Medical Center in Southwest Miami-Dade, as reported by the TV station.
As of Monday morning, the patient remained in the hospital in an unknown condition, according to WSVN.
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“The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission stated in a fact sheet detailing incidents that over the last 10 years, Florida has averaged 8 unprovoked bites per year that require professional medical treatment. The likelihood of a Florida resident being seriously injured during an unprovoked alligator incident in Florida is roughly only one in 3.1 million.”
The most recent statistics from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) regarding alligator bites are from 2022, indicating a total of 13 incidents: two fatal, nine major, and two minor.
According to the Smithsonian National Postal Museum’s website, Everglades National Park is “the only place in the world where alligators coexist with crocodiles.” It is also noted as the sole location in the United States where people can observe crocodiles, attributed to the combination of freshwater from Lake Okeechobee and saltwater from the ocean.
According to the National Park Service, the average visitation for Everglades National Park is 1 million visitors. The park is home to 13 endangered species and 10 threatened species.