CHAGRIN FALLS, Ohio -
Authorities in South Carolina say James Wiencek, 77, of Chagrin Falls, is recovering after he lost his arm below the elbow on Thursday. Wiencek was attacked by an alligator while playing golf on Fripp Island.
Investigators say Wiencek was playing the 11th hole of the island's Ocean Creek Golf Course and leaned down to pick up his ball when a 10-foot long alligator grabbed his arm. A spokesperson for the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources says Wiencek was golfing with his son James, Jr., who lives in Chagrin Falls and owns a vacation home in South Carolina.
Dave Corneliussen, an animal trapper told FOX 8, "Alligators don't have any molars, like we do - is what we like to say - and they tear things off, part of their death roll is to rip things off and they swallow them whole or they tuck it away and let them decompose."
The man's son and fellow golfers were able to free him from the alligator's grasp and called 911. Corneliussen was able to get the arm back and keep it on ice after the victim was rushed to the hospital.
Experts say this kind of attack is rare to Ohioans, but in South Carolina, it's always a danger in communities where gators are on the prowl. "They're ambushers by nature, usually if you see one, you're fine. They're usually right under the surface and when an animal comes to get a drink of water, whatever, they explode out of water," said Corneliussen.
Kate Hines from the Property Owners Association said, "You know, the alligators were here long before us and everybody knows you've got to be careful. But, if they're fed and provoked in anyway they're gonna do what comes naturally."
The alligator did not survive and the condition of the victim is unknown. Hospital officials won't say if a reattachment surgery was successful.
Investigators say Wiencek was playing the 11th hole of the island's Ocean Creek Golf Course and leaned down to pick up his ball when a 10-foot long alligator grabbed his arm. A spokesperson for the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources says Wiencek was golfing with his son James, Jr., who lives in Chagrin Falls and owns a vacation home in South Carolina.
Dave Corneliussen, an animal trapper told FOX 8, "Alligators don't have any molars, like we do - is what we like to say - and they tear things off, part of their death roll is to rip things off and they swallow them whole or they tuck it away and let them decompose."
The man's son and fellow golfers were able to free him from the alligator's grasp and called 911. Corneliussen was able to get the arm back and keep it on ice after the victim was rushed to the hospital.
Experts say this kind of attack is rare to Ohioans, but in South Carolina, it's always a danger in communities where gators are on the prowl. "They're ambushers by nature, usually if you see one, you're fine. They're usually right under the surface and when an animal comes to get a drink of water, whatever, they explode out of water," said Corneliussen.
Kate Hines from the Property Owners Association said, "You know, the alligators were here long before us and everybody knows you've got to be careful. But, if they're fed and provoked in anyway they're gonna do what comes naturally."
The alligator did not survive and the condition of the victim is unknown. Hospital officials won't say if a reattachment surgery was successful.
