Another day, another alligator altercation.
Newsweek related this latest scary tale of an approximately ten-foot long alligator showing up on a suburban lawn on Tuesday. But rather than the imposing 300 to 375-pound reptile roaming near some Louisiana swamp or behind an Australian beach house, this massive intruder was found hanging out between a couple of nice suburban homes in Eagle Lake, Mississippi.
The homeowner didn’t even notice the creature until a neighbor came over to tip her off to the roaming reptile he saw sunning between two houses.
The Vicksburg Daily News got there in time to live stream the capture on Facebook, as Lt. Lee Harvey, from the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks (MDWFP), and Warren County sheriff's deputy Johnny Beauchamp responded to the desperate call that was placed around 7:20 a.m. The two spent the better part of seven minutes trying to wrangle the beast using a rope and catchpole.
"This one put up a pretty good little fight. He definitely didn't want to go quietly," Harvey said.
After much jittery flipping and flopping around, Harvey had to sit on the gator’s back while trying to tape its mouth shut. "I was just doing my best to keep his mouth closed with my hands," added Harvey. "When the alligator rolled, I wasn't expecting it."
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The live stream status led to a more terrifying nailbiter than the usual viral video. "They need more than two people to handle a gator that size safely! That could have turned extremely bad very quickly & it almost did! Glad everyone is safe!" wrote one stream-following commentator.
According to the coordinator of the MDWFP alligator program, Ricky Flynt, the gator was finally captured by the responding officers and safely transported to a remote location.
While the homeowner disclosed it was the first one they’d seen since they moved in 25 years ago, the MDWFP said it receives around 200 to 300 alligator reports per year, with springtime being high season for such fearsome visits.
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Last week, one showed up at a Wendy’s parking lot in Florida. But, you know, that’s Florida for ya.
"We have officers every day that deal with nuisance alligator complaints," added Flynt. "You have to treat them with respect, knowing that they're very strong."
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