Giant alligator nearly the size of a car stops traffic on Texas highway

[virge]

A giant alligator nearly the length of a small family car was captured in Cleveland, Texas, early Monday morning as it attempted to cross Highway 59, near a Whataburger restaurant.

 

The gator, which measured in at 11 feet, 6 inches, was first spotted and reported to the local authorities after it was clipped by an 18-wheeler as it tried to cross the highway, according to the Houston Chronicle.

 
Raw video: The over 11 foot long alligator is captured by authorities for release back into the wild, away from the freeway.

 

"The Gator measured 11' 6" and will be relocated alive to a safe place out of harm's way," Ward wrote in a Facebook post. "We safely placed the Gator on the flat bed of my truck and strapped him for the ride. Only in Texas will you get a Gator and Whataburger in the same picture."

 

Speaking to the Chronicle, Ward said he thought that the alligator would've moved by the time he had gotten to the scene, but it was still impeding traffic, causing the road to be blocked and "would rise up and hiss at them anytime someone would get close."

 

For comparison purposes, the average length of a small family car is between 169 inches (14-feet, 1 inch) and 185 inches (15-feet, 5 inches), depending on the model.

 

As firefighters shut southbound traffic on the highway, Ward eventually grabbed rope from his truck, lassoed the gator and then handed it to over animal control. It took six men to wrestle the gator onto Ward's pickup truck.

 

Nicknamed George by Ward, the alligator was relocated Monday morning and Ward praised a job well done by local law enforcement.

Source: http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2018/04/30/giant-alligator-nearly-size-car-stops-traffic-on-texas-highway.html?ref=yfp

 

[ZaG]

4 hours ago, virge said:

the alligator was relocated Monday morning

I like to hear that the animal was not killed! 

[Ballistic Gelatin]

2 hours ago, ZaG said:

I like to hear that the animal was not killed! 

Nope, we don't kill our gators here in Texas. They are almost always relocated to a new habitat far from where they were originally found. This one is at least 11-12 years old and was relocated about 20 miles from where it was found.

 

Biggest problem we have is with idiots feeding them near residential areas. After a while, they lose their fear of humans, and these particular specimens will then be relocated to an alligator farm to live out the rest of their lives.