Callum Jones
A terrified man has filmed his unbelievable experience as an alligator charged out of a lake towards him.
Jeffrey Skovran was fishing in the American state of Florida when he spotted the large creature heading out of the water towards him. Watch the horrifying moment here:
As Skovran started to walk away from the gator, the animal aggressively hisses at him.
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However, the 19-year-old said that he had encountered alligators before, so he knew how to keep them calm to avoid a disaster happening.
He quickly recognised that the gator was a female and she was likely just hissing at him to protect her nest, which was nearby.
Skovran said: "Once she got towards me, I walked away and just let her be. I felt completely fine as I knew exactly what was happening and what I was doing.
“I hope people understand that mama gators can get really defensive when protecting their nests, but not all alligators are aggressive towards people.
“I knew what to do and that meant I knew I was going to be ok.”
In what would be a traumatic experience for many, Skovran remained relatively calm as the gator quickly approached him.
He said that he hopes the incident will signify the importance to many on how to behave safety and appropriately in these encounters.
By having a similar response to Skovran, it will avoid causing the animal stress and prevent any injuries from occurring.
Not all alligator and human encounters go like this one, unfortunately.
Over the years, there have many fatal alligator attacks that have been recorded in the Untied Sates.
Just this month, 88-year-old Nancy Becker fell into a pond in a gated community in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, and was attacked by a nearly 10-foot-long alligator.
Becker's body was recovered after being guarded by the alligator.
A similar incident happened in July where 80-year-old Rose Marie Wiegand fell into a pond along a golf course in Englewood, Florida, and was attacked by two alligators.
Another two were recorded in the Untied States in 2022, including the death of 47-year-old Sean McGuinness.
The man was retrieving frisbee golf discs in the lake at John S. Taylor Park in Largo, Florida in May.
Police believed McGuinness had entered the lake at night, as his body did not appear to have been in the lake for a long period.
A person walking their dog discovered it along the shoreline with its arm torn off around the next day.
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