Florida Injury Lawyer Blawg
A woman canoeing with her husband this week has died after their vessel flipped on top of an 11-foot alligator and the animal attacked in Kissimmee, Florida, officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said.
Cynthia Diekema, of Davenport, has been identified as the woman who was killed in this incident, according to local media. She was 61.
The incident happened around 4 p.m. Tuesday near the mouth of Tiger Creek in Lake Kissimmee, according to reporting from The Miami Herald. The couple was in a 14-foot canoe in a little more than two feet of water when their canoe went over the animal who then thrashed and flipped them. Both husband and wife ended up in the water and the wife landed on the alligator.
The alligator bit the wife and pulled her underwater as the husband tried to “intervene,” according to FWC officials.
Two alligators of similar length to the one involved in the attack have since been trapped near the Tiger Creek area in the search for the animal involved in the attack. Officials told local media they are testing the animals to confirm which was involved though they suspected the animal’s actions were defensive and not aggressive.
The investigation is ongoing.
Alligator attacks are relatively rare with nearly 500 total attacks and about 30 fatalities reported since 1948, state data shows.
A study from the University of Florida released in April of 2025 shows that roughly 96% of alligator attacks are caused by humans. This means that humans are attacked when swimming or wading in alligator habitats. The research showed, however, that humans being present on land near the animals or walking near them has resulted in “far fewer attacks,” according to local media.
Frank Mazzotti, a professor from the university, sat down with local media and warned about prevention.
“The takeaway from this study is that many bites can be prevented if humans are aware of their surroundings and minimize risky behaviors, such as walking small pets near bodies of water or swimming where alligators are known to be present,” he said.
What Do Excursion Companies Owe Patrons in Florida?
While this couple appears to have been out on the water by themselves, canoeing and kayaking in Florida are common tourist attractions. From major tourist hubs to secluded waterways favored by locals, hundreds of businesses offer guided paddling tours and rental opportunities year-round. Paddling through natural Florida habitats like mangroves and the Everglades are not the only tourist-centered activity in Florida. Snorkeling, jet ski adventures, boat tours, paddleboard and parasailing excursions are all popular tourist activities in the state. With these exciting activities in mind, however, it is important to note that they potential risks.
Before setting off on these tours, it is customary for waivers to be signed and safety briefings to be had. With these steps taken, however, they do not entirely shield these companies from being held liable when accidents involving injuries occur.
Under Florida law, businesses such as these have a legal obligation to their patrons and a responsibility to ensure proper safety measures are followed. Additionally, they must ensure that their customers have had adequate instruction before getting on the water and that all equipment and vessels are well-maintained to avoid injury. This duty of care comes from the legal principle of premises liability, which means that these businesses must maintain their premises and equipment in a reasonably safe condition for patrons and must warn of and quickly address any potential hazards.
While many of these companies will have their patrons sign liability waivers before setting out on their adventures, that does not mean that the injured party cannot seek damages for injuries following an incident. In Florida, these waivers must be clear and unambiguous and do not account for gross negligence of intentional misconduct. This means that even if a participant signs a liability waiver, the company can still be held legally responsible if it acted with reckless disregard for safety – a jet ski company that gives out poorly-maintained equipment to customers – or intentionally caused harm – an airboat operator in the Everglades who intentionally takes customers to an area of the park known for aggressive alligator activity.
In decades of personal injury practice, Leesfield & Partners attorneys have consistently worked to achieve the best possible outcome for clients in every case.
Leesfield & Partners
As a personal injury law firm with offices in cities like Miami, Key West and Orlando, Leesfield & Partners has been privy to the various ways in which companies will attempt to evade liability. From slip and fall premises liability cases to negligent security incidents, our skilled attorneys have been representing clients through devastating injuries and wrongful death cases.
The firm’s resort torts practice area has secured numerous record settlements and verdicts on behalf of injured clients and their grieving family members. This practice area involves injuries at locations such as hotels, amusement or theme parks, casinos, rental car accidents, inadequate resort security cases and cruise ship injuries.
Florida is a hotspot for cruise ship activity with PortMiami attracting millions of passengers to the area every year. Our firm’s experience handling cruise ship cases has spanned decades. These cases have involved the negligence of cruise ship doctors, slip and/or trip and fall cases, criminal activity aboard ships and injuries sustained during cruise-sanctioned excursions. One such cruise ship excursion case handled by the firm involves a mother and daughter who booked a parasailing adventure while on their ship.
Once the two were up in the air, however, an equipment failure caused them to fall from hundreds of feet to the water below. Tragically, the mother died, and the daughter sustained a traumatic brain injury. Leesfield & Partners attorneys worked diligently in that case to return a $7.25 million settlement for the families.
Recently, Partner Justin B. Shapiro filed suit in a cruise ship excursion case involving a jet ski crash. Our client signed up for a novice jet ski excursion on her cruise ship, hoping to enjoy a day on the water. Instead, the cruise’s jet ski tour guide crashed into our client from behind and caused multiple spinal fractures and severe bruising.
That case is ongoing.
Previous Tourist Cases
Leesfield & Partners handled the wrongful death case of a husband and wife who were involved in a motor vehicle accident in Florida while visiting from the U.K. The two had come to the area specifically for a motorcycle tour that was happening in the area.
Leesfield & Partners obtained a $1 million partial settlement with the uninsured motorist insurance policy.
A newlywed German couple on their honeymoon were horrifically burned when an uncapped gas pipe in their vacation accommodations caused an explosion. The wife died as a result of her devastating injuries.
A multi-million-dollar award was secured for the husband in that case.
The firm previously represented a husband who lost his wife due to the negligence of a jet ski rental company. Under Florida law, these rental companies must ensure that every guest understands safety briefings given before they are set out on the water. A French-speaking tourist in this case, however, did not understand the tutorial, given in English. Asa result, this tourist eventually crashed into our client’s wife, causing fatal injuries.
A multi-million-dollar result was secured for the husband in that case.
A tourist from Brazil was brutally attacked while at a theme park in Central Florida. Leesfield & Partners obtained a confidential settlement for the victim in that case.
A student from Massachusetts was killed in a horrific car accident while visiting Daytona Beach. The bad faith case – meaning that the insurance company denied the claim without sufficient reasoning, evidence or proper investigation – was resolved with a $1 million award for the grieving family.
Leesfield & Partners represented the family of a man who died while visiting Dry Tortugas National Park with his wife on a boat tour. The man was found dead after officials with the tour company directed him to an area they assured him was “good to snorkel.”
Recently, Evan Robinson, a Trial Attorney at the firm, returned a six-figure verdict for a woman who was injured at a popular Florida tourist attraction. In that case, the property’s sidewalk was flanked by a sharp divot with no railing to prevent falls. This hazard was known to property managers who regularly tasked employees to fill the trench with gravel.
When the narrow walkway became too crowded, our client stepped off it and into the trench. As a result, she lost her balance and violently fell to the concrete ground, shattering her hip.
