Woman dragged under water and killed as she saves dog from 8ft alligator in South Carolina

A woman has been killed as she tried to rescue her dog from an eight-foot alligator in South Carolina.

Cassandra Cline, 45, was walking her pet in a residential area near a lagoon at a private resort in the US state on Monday.

The huge reptile leapt out of the water and tried to get her dog, authorities said. When she tried to rescue it the alligator dragged her into the water.

David Lucas, a spokesman for the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources said: “She was walking the dog near the lagoon and the alligator came out of the water and tried to get the dog.

"The lady tried to rescue the dog and a maintenance worker ran over to help."

Both were trying to save the dog, but the alligator dragged the woman into the water, he said.

The dog was unharmed but Ms Cline died in the attack.

The alligator was later found and killed, Mr Lucas added.

"It's common practice when we have an aggressive alligator like that, we put it down, but it will take some take some time to confirm it's the right alligator," said Robert McCullough of the Department of Natural Resources.

Alligator attacks on humans are extremely rare, Mr Lucas said.

Since 1976, there have only been about 20 attacks on people in the state, he said.

Until 2016, none of those attacks had been fatal. In 2016, a 90-year-old woman wandered away from a Charleston assisted living facility and was found dead in a pond.