OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. – Months after a deadly alligator attack at Lake Kissimmee State Park, investigators have released a report detailing what exactly happened.
The incident happened in May 2025 near the mouth of Tiger Creek into Lake Kissimmee in Polk County, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
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An investigative report obtained by News4JAX sister station WKMG in Orlando this week shows that a couple was paddling through the area using a 14-foot canoe in around 2 feet of water, spotting several alligators as they went along.
But as the couple neared the mouth of Tiger Creek, the wife stated, “We’re about to go right over top of one.”
As the canoe went over the alligator’s back, the alligator began thrashing, knocking the couple into the creek as the canoe capsized, investigators added.
The husband stood up, discovering his wife in the alligator’s mouth, the report says. Despite trying to free her for several minutes, he was unable to rescue her.
The alligator ultimately performed a death roll before swimming away with the woman still in its mouth, and the husband — who lost his phone during the incident — was forced to paddle back to the lake, where he was rescued by a good Samaritan in an airboat, investigators revealed.
“The good Samaritan called 911 and transported (him) to the Lake Kissimmee State Park boat ramp, where he waited until the authorities arrived,” the report reads.
Wildlife officials said that trappers recovered an alligator spanning over 11 feet long, and the wife’s body was later found floating in the water.
She was identified as 61-year-old Cynthia Diekema, and her cause of death was determined to be several blunt force impacts from the alligator, investigators said.
While serious injuries caused by alligators are rare in Florida, the FWC said that residents with concerns about an alligator should call the agency’s toll-free Nuisance Alligator Hotline at (866) 392-4286.