19-05-2025
NC coastal town captures 9 alligators in a week; Ocean Isle Beach woman gets gator video surprise – ‘Yikes!'
SOUTHPORT, N.C. (WNCN) — The hotbed for alligators in April at the North Carolina coast is heating up even further in May, with nine gators captured and relocated in just one Brunswick County town last week.
In April, three alligators — ranging from a couple of feet to 13 feet — surprised residents over a month in Southport near Wilmington and at Sunset Beach, just a mile from the South Carolina border.
The Southport Police Department removed alligators from two yards while Sunset Beach Police snagged a small gator that crept into an unlucky resident's garage and lurked under a car.
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But, this past week, Southport police said the pace spiked with more than a call per day to deal with alligators.
'Officers, along with our Animal Protection Services, have been busy answering between 7 to 9 calls this week to relocate alligators in and around Southport,' police wrote in a news release that included two red exclamation points.
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Police included a photo of a Southport officer holding a small gator that was captured Saturday at the town's City Gym.
'At the close of another busy week, we want to again thank you for your acts of kindness shown during National Police Week,' officers said.
Meanwhile, alligators are up and active in various parts of Brunswick County.
Lori Hayes, who lives in Ocean Isle Beach, was along Old Georgetown Road SW on Friday when she stopped at a pond and started recording video.
'I thought, I want to see if there's an alligator in this pond. It took less than five seconds to find one. Yikes!' wrote Hayes, an author of North Carolina beach reads.
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While recording video, the large gator began walking, which left an impression on Hayes.
'Oh my gosh, he's moving — oh my gosh!!' The alligator then slips into murky water and vanishes.
Southport police reminded folks to remember 'to call 911, keep your distance, and never feed alligators.'
Last summer, an alligator was spotted along the beach and in the surf at Caswell Beach and at nearby Holden Beach.
Gators are known to live in areas of eastern North Carolina — with the most dense gathering likely at Orton Pond in Brunswick County.
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