How dangerous are alligators? SC alligator attack facts you need to know

A recent story of a 10-year-old girl who was bit by an alligator in Florida makes a lot of us uneasy about the Lowcountry critter.

But don’t be too concerned. Statistics on alligator attacks both in SC and nationwide should calm your nerves a bit.

According to the CDC, 10 people between 1999 and 2015 were killed by alligators and alligators nationwide.

By comparison, the CDC reports that 922 people died nationwide in falls involving beds in 2015 alone.

In South Carolina, there has only been one recorded death in the last 41 years, and it remains unclear what role alligators played in it, according to SCDNR.

Nonfatal alligator attacks have also been rare in SC.

“Since 1976 there have only been 20 incidents that we’re aware of,” said Jay Butfiloski, certified wildlife biologist for the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources.

According to the Florida Museum of Natural History, there were just nine reported alligator attacks from 1949 to 2005 in South Carolina, compared to 391 in Florida.

There were 38 shark attacks in the Palmetto State, while there were 501 shark attacks in Florida during the same time period, the Florida Museum of Natural history reports.

From 1949 to 2005, 17 people were killed in Florida from alligator bites and one person was killed in Georgia. According to data from the Florida Museum of Natural History, only 4.3% of recorded alligator attacks were fatal.

This story was originally published May 13, 2017 at 7:00 AM with the headline "How dangerous are alligators? SC alligator attack facts you need to know."