TYBEE ISLAND, Ga. (AP) - Authorities say lifeguards had to keep people out of the water at Georgia’s largest public beach after an alligator was spotted in the sand and surf.
The Savannah Morning News reports (https://bit.ly/2qFcy20 ) that authorities called in a licensed trapper to capture the 8-foot (2.4-meter) alligator on Tybee Island. The gator was found taking a swim and strolling on the sand early Thursday.
Though alligators live in fresh water, it’s not that unusual to find them near the ocean. Tybee Island Police Chief Bob Bryson estimated that four or five gators have been seen on the island’s beach in the past 18 years.
Jack Douglas, the Savannah area’s licensed alligator trapper, said the Georgia Department of Natural Resources will decide whether to have the alligator killed or relocate it.
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