An alligator was released from the storm drain.
Photo: Joe Raedle / Getty Images
A oversized alligator was rescued after spending several days trapped in a storm drain in a residential neighborhood in Florida.
Louis Fernandez of Westchester, in Miami-Dade County, He said he and his friend Javier Álvarez were playing ball in their neighborhood when they saw an animal in a storm drain that they initially mistook for a turtle.
“The nose moves and breathes and I realized that it was not a turtle, that’s when we discovered that it was an alligator,” Fernández told local television station WPLG-TV.
Residents noticed that the alligator was still there after several days, so they contacted the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Commission officials determined that the alligator, which was about ten feet long, appeared to be trapped in the drain, so Miami-Dade County Public Works was called in to pump water down the storm drain.
“We called public works and they used some water pumps to push the water through the storm drain,” said Officer Ron Washington.
“It went to the positive outflow into the channel and eventually the crocodile swam back to the channel.”
Washington said officials were unable to capture the crocodile, but believe that the rescue was a success.
“Any day when no one is injured and no animal is injured, then our mission has been accomplished. We are the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and protecting our natural resources is paramount and public safety as well, ”Washington told WSVN-TV.
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