Gator killed after swimmer found dead at Blue Spring

A man’s routine swim turned deadly Monday at Blue Spring State Park, where wildlife officers later found and shot a 12-foot alligator.

James Okkerse, 61, was found floating face down near the shore of the swimming area, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. A friend had reported Okkerse missing after he hadn’t returned for about 15 minutes.

Now FWC is investigating whether the alligator might have played a role in Okkerse’s death, said FWC spokesman Lenny Salberg. An autopsy is scheduled for today, he said.

“We won’t know until the autopsy comes in,” Salberg said, noting the DeBary man was not missing any limbs. He said he could not tell whether the man suffered bite marks.

Wildlife officers killed the alligator because an animal that large posed a threat to guests at the state park, Salberg said. Sightings of the reptile over the past several days prompted FWC to shut down the popular swimming area Sunday to look for it. The park, near Orange City, is best known as a warmwater haven for manatees during the winter.

Okkerse, who moved to Florida from Michigan, has been swimming at Blue Spring for 20 years and was in great physical shape, a family member said by phone. All the park rangers knew the retiree, said his cousin, John Lommerse.

“It’s just a shock,” he said. “It’s a shock to the whole family … you don’t expect it.”

The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office initially responded to the state park about 9:10 a.m. after a woman called with concerns that her friend had not returned from a swim.

“I hate to make you guys come out for nothing, but I’m afraid the man has disappeared,” the caller said. “I was swimming up behind him and it looked like he was kind of like floating … and when I swam up to see where he was, he was completely gone. Just gone.”