PICTURED: 71 year-old Louisiana man killed by an ALLIGATOR during Hurricane Ida floods after his wife tried desperately to save him
A 71 year-old father has been named as the man killed by an alligator after Hurricane Ida flooded his Louisiana home.
Timothy Satterlee was seized by the creature at his home in Slidell, Louisiana, in the early hours of Monday as his horrified wife looked on.
Satterlee's spouse, who has not been named, tried to save him, but the creature had torn off Satterlee's arm, and she was unable to do so.
His remains have not been found. WWL news reporter Erika Ferrando said she'd been told by locals that Satterlee was 'a very kind and beloved father.'
Search crews with a cadaver dog looked in vain for traces of Timothy Satterlee, 71, on Wednesday, St. Tammany Parish sheriff's Capt. Lance Vitter revealed on Thursday.
'They searched until it got dark yesterday, and unfortunately we still haven't located Mr. Satterlee,' Vitter said. 'There is a high probability that he is deceased, but we can't make that call until we recover the body.'
Timothy Satterlee, pictured with his wife, right. He was killed in an alligator attack in Slidell, Louisiana, during Hurricane Ida on Monday
Deputies are seen parked close to where Satterlee was killed by the gator in Slidell, Louisiana, in the early hours of Monday
A flooded street is seen in Slidell, Louisiana, where 71-year-old Timothy Satterlee was attacked by an alligator during Hurricane Ida
Satterlee's wife heard splashing on Monday, and walked outside their home on Avery Road to see the gator attacking her husband inside the family's flooded shed, reported WWL.
The home is located near Lake Pontchartrain in the New Orleans suburb of Slidell, authorities said.
Satterlee's wife told deputies that she was able to pull her husband up a flight of stairs, but after seeing the extent of his injuries she got in a canoe and went for help.
The gator is then feared to have returned to finish Satterlee off.
At the time of the incident, the couple's home was surrounded by floodwaters and had no cell service.
By the time the wife returned to the house with deputies in tow, her husband was gone but blood was found at the scene.
The area where the attack happened is surrounded by marshland and is known to have large alligators (stock image)
Searchers spent six hours that day looking for the missing man, but to no avail.
Neighbors told WWL alligators are common in the area and are known to approach people because some feed them.
Hurricane Ida hit Sunday with 150mph winds was tied for the fifth-strongest hurricane ever to hit the mainland US.
The storm caused widespread power outages and wrecked havoc on water systems, leaving 600,000 customers without running water.
At least seven deaths were blamed on the storm in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, before the remnants of the weather system moved east, dumping record-breaking rain in a region that had not expected a serious blow and killing at least 28 people from Maryland to New York.