South Carolina Resident Dead After Alligator Attacked, Dragged Him Into A Retention Pond

A man has been reported dead after being attacked and dragged into a retention pond by an alligator near Myrtle Beach, South Carolina on Friday, June 24.

On June 24, the unnamed victim, a resident in the area, was reportedly "near the retention pond" when an alligator unexpectedly attacked him, took hold of him, and dragged him back into the small body of water. Following the incident, at about 11:45 a.m, fire officials responded to a call in the Excalibur Court area outside Myrtle Beach and later recovered the victim's body from the pond. The authorities have not released details regarding the victim’s name, age, or other circumstances of the attack, the New York Times reported.

Following the incident, a biologist who works with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, along with an alligator-removal service contracted by the department, determined that the alligator that killed the poor man should be humanely euthanized on site.

Meanwhile, the Horry County Police Department is leading an investigation into the man's death, NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth reported.

Neighbor Jason Repak, who lives in the same community as the victim, clicked a photo of three alligators behind his condominium last month and posted it on social media.

“I couldn’t have imagined that it was likely one of these alligators that would later kill a man,” he wrote. “My prayers and heart go out to the family as my arms wrap tighter around my kids and dogs near these ponds.”

Repak said it was common to watch alligators walk on a road over a pair of retention ponds.

“We’ve always looked at the alligators as a part of the community,” he said. “Everybody treats them with a healthy respect. You try to maintain distance from the banks, and when you see them out, you admire them from afar. They’re a part of nature.”

During his interview with reporters, Repak added that Friday’s death was “a tragic, freak accident.”

The poor man's death on Friday was the first death that happened from an alligator attack in South Carolina since May two years ago. In May 2020, 58-year-old Cynthia Covert died after being dragged into a pond behind her friend’s home on Kiawah Island, near Charleston.