Negligence lawsuit blames gator bite on airboat company
By Brandon Hogan
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ORANGE COUNTY, Florida (WESH) — A man who sued an Orange County airboat company last month claimed negligence led to him being bitten on the face by an alligator.
Edil Kasenov, of Broward County, filed the lawsuit May 20 against Airboat Rides at Midway, which advertises daily airboat rides on the St. Johns River east of Christmas.
The Airboat Rides at Midway website further states it offers an “Alligator Encounter where you can hold an alligator and take pictures” for free at the end of an airboat tour.
Kasenov’s lawsuit demands $50,000, pointing to an incident on June 9, 2025, during which — as a business invitee to the property — he claims to have been bitten in the face by an alligator that was handed to him by an employee, resulting in serious injuries, during one of these free alligator encounters.
“As a result of the Defendant’s failure to properly train and/or supervise (its) employees in a safe and reasonable manner, and/or warn the Plaintiff of the dangerous and hazardous condition, the Plaintiff suffered serious injuries,” the lawsuit states, going on to claim Kasenov was never warned “of the alligator’s vicious nature.”
WESH 2 News has reached out to the airboat company for comment.
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