To protect, serve, and relocate? Sunset Beach police remove gator from parking lot

SUNSET BEACH, NC (WWAY) — Sunset Beach police had an unusual guest waiting for them in their parking lot on Monday morning, an alligator measuring more than eight feet long.

Police say an officer arrived and spotted the gator in one of the parking spaces.

“Officer Huddleston parked his vehicle to get a closer look and couldn’t believe what he was seeing,” Sunset Beach police posted on Facebook.

Police said one of their officers, Sgt. Harden, is licensed with the NC Wildlife Resources Commission and is trained and certified to remove nuisance alligators. Out of concern for the safety of employees and the alligator, the alligator was safely relocated to a nearby pond.

Police Chief Ken Klamar says, “Upon officers’ arrival to work, they were met by quite a large gator in the back parking lot. I encountered the same thing when I came through the back way and found the gator partially in the walkway and partially in the parking lot. We have several officers that are certified through the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commision as alligator handling agents. He did his thing and safely corralled the gator and located him to a nearby pond.”

“You often hear the saying ‘keep your eyes on your surroundings’ and today is a perfect example of why you should always be aware of your surroundings,” police wrote.