Authorities are continuing the search for a 2-year-old boy who was dragged away by an alligator from a Disney World, Orlando, Fla., resort late Tuesday, as officials continue to pull alligators from the nearby lagoon in order to check for the boyโs body, CBS News reports.
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Orange County Sheriffโs Department spokesman Jeff Williamson said the search near Disneyโs Grand Floridian Resort and Spa was still being considered a โsearch-and-rescue operation,โ despite fears of the worst.
โWe are very hopeful,โ he said at a morning news conference, CBS reports. โSometimes you get the worst, but we are hoping for the best.โ
Officials told CBS affiliate WKMG that they were going to โkeep searching and searching and searching until we canโt search anymore.โ
So far, four alligators have been taken from the water overnight, euthanized and analyzed for evidence of the boy. However, officials have found nothing to signal that those four were involved in the attack.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservationโs Nick Wiley told CBS that it is rare for people to be attacked by the animals.
The boyโs family had come in from Nebraska for vacation Sunday. The family was hanging out on the beach of Seven Seas Lagoon around 9:30 p.m. when the attack happened. The child was wading in the water nearby, while his 4-year-old sister was in a playpen about 20 to 30 yards from the water, Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings said.
The boy was probably a foot or two into the water when the alligator attacked. The boyโs father ran into the water but could not rescue his son.
โThe father actually went into the water to wrestle his son from the grips of the alligator,โ Demings said.ย The father suffered cuts and lacerations.
According to CBS, the attack happened in an area where โNo Swimmingโ signs were posted.
The alligator that took the child is estimated to be about 4-7 feet long.
Law-enforcement officers searched the lagoon with an alligator tracker and two marine units throughout the night with the aid of a sonar boat. Williamson said Wednesday that more individuals would be brought in to bring โfresh eyesโ to the search.
When asked by reporters the odds of rescuing the child, Williamson responded, โRight now, hopefully, weโre searching for a little boy to bring the family some comfort.โ
Read more at CBS News.
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