Last Updated Aug 20, 2018 2:47 PM EDT
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — A South Carolina woman has been attacked and killed by an alligator as she walked her dog near a lagoon, authorities said. The attack occurred around 9:30 a.m. Monday at the Sea Pines resort on Hilton Head Island, the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
The woman was attacked and pulled under water by an alligator thought to be about 8 feet long, the sheriff’s office said. Beaufort County Coroner Ed Allen identified the victim as Cassandra Cline, 45, of Hilton Head Island. An autopsy is pending.
The sheriff’s office said the dog was not harmed, CBS affiliate WTOC reports.
The sheriff’s department, the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, and resort security personnel are looking for the alligator.
“We are extremely saddened by this news,” Sea Pines resort said in a letter to property owners.
In June, a woman in Florida was killed by an alligator while walking her dogs near a lake. Officials reportedly found an arm inside the reptile.
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