Woodward went swimming with a companion at around 2:30am on Friday when the pair spotted an 11-foot-long gator.
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He was the first person killed by an alligator in Texas since 1836, when a man was attacked while swimming across a bayou.
Woodward had recently moved to Orange from St. Louis with his twin brother to work at a shipyard, said Wright, who was friends with him.
The “No Swimming Alligators” sign was posted this week after a 10-foot alligator was spotted in the bayou waters.
“Next thing I know this girl is screaming and an alligator’s got him”, Wright said.
The marina’s owner said two employees urged Woodward not to go in the water, but he ignored them, as stated by CNN. He was a half a mile down from where he was swimming off Burkart’s Marina in southeastern Texas.
Allen Burkhart, owner of the marina and restaurant, told the Houston Chronicle that he put up a sign warning patrons of the deadly animals after spotting a 12-foot alligator swimming in the bayou.
“He removed his shirt, removed his billfold … someone shouted a warning and he said “blank the alligators” and jumped in to the water and almost immediately yelled for help.”
Michelle Wright told reporters about the shocking aftermath of the man’s alligator attack and death.
In an emotional interview with KFDM, Wright said, “I saw his body floating facedown”.
A game warden in a boat found Woodward’s body around 4:30 a.m. about 200 yards from the attack site. And then he comes back up still face down and then he gets pulled down again. “And then he just disappears”. She told the press that Woodward had been drinking prior to his fatal swim, but it hasn’t yet been concluded whether alcohol was a factor in the poor decision leading to the man’s alligator attack. Their feeding time is when the sun goes down, so you don’t go in the water after dark if there are alligators in the area, as stated by alligator expert Arlie Hammonds. That’s when they’re eating. As mentioned by Texas Parks and Wildlife, the creature “will eat anything it can catch”, and should be treated with caution.
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[Image via Stacy Revere / Getty Images].
