Gator spits up soccer ball, still in SC lagoon

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. (AP) — A 13-foot alligator swiped a soccer ball near a Hilton head lagoon and while the gator later spit up the ball, he’s still lurking in the water.

The Island Packet of Hilton Head reports (http://bit.ly/K9FCVnrtrs ) the alligator grabbed the soccer ball Saturday while a soccer team was holding a picnic nearby. There were about 200 children in the area.

Because of the alligator’s size, the Department of Natural Resources dispatched a company to snag the gator and workers from Critter Management got hooks into it Sunday and the animal spit out the ball.

But the gator is wrapped in underwater debris leaving workers to wait the creature out.

Critter Management’s Joe Maffo says the operation is at a stalemate.

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Information from: The Island Packet, http://www.islandpacket.com