Attorneys representing the family of Gloria Serge, 85, who was killed by an alligator last year in her own community in Fort Pierce, announced Thursday that they have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the community where she lived.
Serge was snatched by an 11-foot-long alligator on Feb. 20, 2023, as she was walking her dog near the retention pond behind her Spanish Lakes Fairways home.
“I could have never imagined the agonizing way in which my mom spent her final moments of her life,” Gloria Serge’s son, Bill Serge, said Thursday.
Tears ran down the face of Bill Serge as remembered the horrific death of his mother.
“My mom, who was in her 85th year, who could not swim, was grabbed by a 10-foot, 700-pound alligator and dragged into the water where she drowned in the most violent and terrifying way possible,” he said.
Attorneys said residents and staff members were so accustomed to the gator that they named him Henry and residents and staff would often feed him chicken and other food items.
Despite that it was well-known that alligators were in the retention pond, Spanish Lakes placed benches near the water, according to the attorneys.
“This could have been prevented. This should have never happened, and God willing, it will never happen again,” Bill Serge said.
According to the family’s attorneys, Gloria Serge had previously received a violation for walking her small dog Trooper in her front yard, so she was forced to either walk her dog in the back near the pond or take him over a mile away to a dog walking area.
“Spanish Lakes, the community where Gloria lived, is 100% responsible for this incident and this incident was 100% preventable,” attorney Gary Lesser said.
On the day of the attack, the gator grabbed onto her left foot and dragged her into the water, drowning her.
One resident, 77-year-old Carol, said it was just past noon that day when it happened.
“I heard kind of like a commotion,” she said. “I looked out and I saw the dog and I saw my neighbor.”
Carol first called 911 and ran, trying and hoping she could help.
“I just remember her coming up and pushing her hair out of her face and I’m saying, ‘Swim toward the paddle boat,’ and she said, ‘I can’t, the gator has me,’” Carol said.
“I got my longest Shepard’s hook to try to hook her or hit him or do something,” Carol continued. “Hit him on the nose or something. I couldn’t do anything, which haunts me right now.”
Serge’s body was recovered, and a contracted nuisance alligator trapper captured the gator involved in the incident.
“(We) snagged him on the bottom and he never surfaced. He stayed down the whole time,” an FWC official said last year. “We were able to get a second hook in him and get a hard line in him so we could get him up.”
Neighbors told Local 10 News that they often see dozens of gators, of all sizes, at Spanish Lakes.
“We’re used to seeing them but they’re usually not doing anything,” said Charles Hermann. “They just lay in the sun, so you wouldn’t expect it.”
The Serge family’s attorneys said after the gator attack, Spanish Lakes said they would post signs warning about the alligators, something they said was “too little too late.”
According to Lesser, Spanish Lakes never called the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission despite knowing that the gator lacked a fear of people.
“Residents and staff fed this alligator chicken and other food from their lunch on a regular basis,” he said.
Lesser said his firm is now filing suit against Spanish Lakes to prevent an incident like this from ever happening again.
“No one should ever experience what my mom had to endure that day and no child should have to bury their mom,” Bill Serge said.
Local 10′s Roy Ramos asked about what damages the family is seeking, but they said they would let a jury decide what was appropriate.
Joel Wynne, President of Wynne Building Corporation, released the following statement Friday to Local 10 News: “We certainly understand the tragedy and the feelings of Mrs. Serge’s family. However, we developed Spanish Lakes Fairways 37 years ago. We have approximately 3,000 residents. This is the very first time where a resident was attacked by an Alligator. Mrs. Serge was a longtime resident and certainly knew of the presence of alligators and that they were inherently dangerous animals.”
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