{"id":343640,"date":"2026-07-17T17:23:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T17:23:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/343640\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T17:23:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T17:23:13","slug":"brittany-clark-dna-matches-13-foot-alligator-in-fatal-florida-attack","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/343640\/","title":{"rendered":"Brittany Clark DNA matches 13-foot alligator in fatal Florida attack"},"content":{"rendered":"

Deputies respond to deadly Florida alligator attack<\/a> <\/p>\n

Body camera video shows a Seminole County deputy responding to a deadly alligator attack in the Little Big Econ State Forest on June 28. The victim, Brittany Clark, 31, died after being transported to the hospital as a trauma alert.<\/p>\n

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DNA from a Florida woman<\/a> has been positively linked to the genetic material of a monstrous 13-foot alligator captured after a fatal river attack last month, wildlife officials confirmed.<\/p>\n

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation (FWC), laboratory testing confirmed DNA from Brittany Clark, 31,\u00a0matched a 13-foot\u00a0alligator\u00a0captured after the deadly attack on the Econlockhatchee River on June 28.<\/p>\n

Clark, of Orlando<\/a>, was swimming near the Barr Street Trailhead in the Little Big Econ State Forest when the assault happened. She was taken to a hospital as a trauma alert but died from her injuries on the way, officials said.<\/p>\n

‘DWTS’ WINNER ROBERT IRWIN WAS ‘DEATH ROLLED’ BY A 14-FOOT CROCODILE HE NAMED AFTER JIMMY FALLON<\/a><\/p>\n

\"brittany-clark-001\" <\/p>\n

Brittany Clark was fatally attacked by an alligator in the Econlockhatchee River, officials said. (Brittany Clark via Facebook)<\/p>\n

According to a preliminary report from the Orange County Medical Examiner’s Office obtained by Fox News affiliate WOFL-TV,<\/a> Clark was swimming in shoulder-deep water with her boyfriend, Chance Allison, and another friend when the alligator grabbed her arm and began what investigators described as a “death roll.”<\/p>\n

“[Allison] grabbed the alligator trying to get it to release [Clark] \u2026 when it took them both underwater releasing [Clark] for a moment and then grabbing her other arm,” the report said.<\/p>\n

Once the alligator let go, Allison brought Clark to shore and called 911, the report said. Brief body camera video captured a Seminole County deputy responding to the attack.<\/p>\n

MAN CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED MURDER, RELEASED AFTER ALLEGEDLY FORCING TODDLER INTO CROCODILE ENCLOSURE AT ZOO<\/a><\/p>\n

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Brittany Clark, whose death prompted renewed warnings from Florida wildlife officials about alligator safety, is shown in an undated photo. (Brittany Clark via Facebook)<\/p>\n

An alligator’s “death roll” is when the reptile latches on to potential prey and violently spins in the water to subdue or dismember it, according to the National Institute of Health<\/a>.<\/p>\n

After the attack, FWC trappers captured and killed two huge alligators \u2014 12.5-foot and 13-foot gators \u2014 and sent their DNA to a lab to determine if either animal was the one that killed Clark.<\/p>\n

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Brittany Clark is pictured aboard a boat. Clark died after an alligator attacked her while she was swimming in the Econlockhatchee River in Central Florida, officials said. (Brittany Clark via Facebook)<\/p>\n

DNA TECHNOLOGY LEADS TO ARREST IN 1988 KILLING OF ORLANDO WOMAN AFTER NEARLY FOUR DECADES<\/a><\/p>\n

According to the FWC, bite marks found on Clark’s arm were consistent with the front row teeth of the 13-foot alligator found at the river.<\/p>\n

“The FWC\u2019s investigation into this incident<\/a> remains active,” the agency said.<\/p>\n

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Serious alligator attacks remain rare<\/p>\n

The FWC said serious injuries caused<\/a> by alligators are uncommon in Florida, although alligators can be found in lakes, rivers, ponds and other freshwater bodies across all 67 counties.<\/p>\n

Officials said they are not speculating about what prompted the attack but noted that alligators can become more territorial during their mating season, which typically runs from April through June.<\/p>\n

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\"0d8a7dbf-Florida <\/p>\n

DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA – JUNE 27: An alligator populates the Wakodahatchee Wetlands on June 27, 2022 in Delray Beach, Florida. (Photo by Bruce Bennett\/Getty Images) <\/p>\n

A few safety recommendations for individuals coming into contact with an alligator, according to the FWC: “Keep a safe distance” and “keep pets on a leash and away from the water\u2019s edge.”<\/p>\n

“Pets often resemble alligators\u2019 natural prey,” officials warned. “Swim only in designated swimming areas during daylight hours and without your pet. Alligators are most active between dusk and dawn.”<\/p>\n

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Also, “never feed an alligator; it\u2019s illegal and dangerous.”<\/p>\n

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“When fed, alligators can lose their natural wariness and instead learn to associate people with the availability of food,” the FWC added. “This can lead to an alligator becoming a nuisance and needing to be removed from the wild.”<\/p>\n

People with concerns about an alligator should call FWC\u2019s toll-free Nuisance Alligator Hotline at \u202f866-FWC-GATOR.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Fox News Digital’s Eric Mack contributed to this report.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Deputies respond to deadly Florida alligator attack Body camera video shows a Seminole County deputy responding to a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":343641,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[28,3858,139,141,140,7107,49097,628],"class_list":["post-343640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-florida","tag-investigations","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-news","tag-police-and-law-enforcement","tag-reptiles","tag-us"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/343640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=343640"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/343640\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/343641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=343640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=343640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=343640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}