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Video above: FWC discusses woman killed in alligator attack
LAKE WALES, Fla. (WFLA) — This week, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation issued another update on a fatal alligator attack that took place in Polk County last month.
The incident occurred on May 3, 2025, along Tiger Creek near Lake Kissimmee State Park, which was also the location of a different alligator attack in March 2025.
The FWC report states that Cynthia Diekama from Paw Paw, Michigan, was out canoeing with her husband, David Diekama, when they accidentally paddled over the back of an 11-foot alligator in water approximately 2.5 feet deep.
As the canoe passed over the alligator, the reptile thrashed and knocked the two 61-year-olds out of their vessel.
The FWC stated that Cynthia Diekama was immediately bitten by the alligator. Her husband tried to help her, but he could not rescue her from the alligator.
The 11-foot crocodilian then performed a “death roll,” a maneuver alligators use to kill their prey, before swimming away with the woman.
“She sustained multiple severe injuries and was later located and recovered by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation (FWC) officers,” the report stated. “Emergency medical services pronounced her deceased at 17:33 hours on scene.”
FWC officers and trappers found an 11-foot 4-inch male alligator believed to be the animal responsible for the woman’s death. They then “removed” it from the wild.
