Members of the Montverde Academy swim team in Florida had quite the guest at practice, and no, it wasn't Olympians Michael Phelps or Katie Ledecky. This visitor was three feet long and needed local authorities to come get it out of the pool.
The Lake County Sheriff's Office responded to a call on Friday, March 11 to get a baby alligator out of the pool that was holding up the swim team's practice.
Officers had to use a safety hook to pull it up out of the water and then closed its mouth with electrical tape. They posted images of the gator to Facebook.
In the post, the Lake County Sheriff's Office explained, "DFC Faust and Deputy Brownsberger responded to a call at Montverde Academy in reference to a three-foot alligator that had decided to try out for the swim team, preventing the actual swim team from practicing."
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The officers then took the gator to a pool it's more used to that won't sting its eyes with chlorine.
"Deputy Brownsberger was able to use a safety hook to bring him to the edge where Deputy Faust reached down and grabbed the gator. His mouth was then secured with electric tape and temporarily detained so they could safely transport him to Lake Apopka, where the gator was released on its own recognizance."
Thankfully, members of the swim team spotted the gator before anyone could have been potentially injured. A baby alligator may be less aggressive than its parents, but can still cause harm with its sharp teeth.
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The Lake County Sheriff's Office made it clear that "no deputies or gators were hurt during the encounter."
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