WhoaitsZ

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...ators_on_board


Gator Gets Loose in Airliner Compartment
Mon Oct 27, 4:24 PM ET

By STEVE STRUNSKY, Associated Press Writer

NEWARK, N.J. - No, it wasn't just an alligator bag. Rather, a live alligator was captured inside the baggage hold of an airliner Monday after it escaped from a crate of four gators being shipped from Miami, officials said.



The alligator was a juvenile, 4-5 feet long, and remained inside a burlap bag with its mouth bound shut, said Tim Wagner, an American Airlines spokesman. He said he didn't know how much it weighed.

No one was reported hurt, and the alligator was placed back in its crate and claimed by its owners, Wagner said.

Authorities were looking into how the reptile got out of the box.

The gators flew into Newark Liberty International Airport on American Flight 776 from Miami, a Boeing 767, which arrived at 10:28 a.m.

"Upon arrival at Newark, when the cargo hold was opened, one of the alligators was outside of the crate," said Wagner. "Still in the burlap bag, still with his mouth bound properly. So they called the Port Authority, put the alligator back in the crate with its companions, and it has now been reunited with its owners."

"These were juvenile alligators, small alligators," Wagner added.

Tony Ciavolella, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs the airport, said the Port Authority Police emergency services unit was called in. Officers did not wrestle the alligator or use a tranquilizer gun, he said, but rather used a closing-loop device to capture it.

Officers from the state Division of Fish, Game and Wildlife were called in, but were not needed, Ciavolella said.

Wagner would not release the owners' names. Neither he nor Ciavolella knew why the alligators were being transported. Their health certificates and other paperwork were in order, Wagner said.


heh

okay, this isn't exactly news worthy, but I like to post the threads that are simply fuggin odd and you can say 'okaaaaaay' and go about your day.

the only comment i can add to this is i believe any transporter of animals should be required to have thorough knowledge of what they transport.

at least they didn't hurt the poor baby. aligators, unlike what most believe, are highly, highly tolerate creatures and will rarely attack unless it fears death or guarding babes. i've seen people pick four foot gators up like a dog, no rope, no anything.

anyhow. enjoy?

-shrug-

bluearmy

Imagine working as a baggage handler and being told to handle that, I would be like boss, "When it has handles and a lock on it fine until then NO FU*KING WAY"

losthellhound

No matter how calm and docile an alligator is, or seems to be.. I dont think Id pick it up like a dog.. Come to think of it.. I dont pick dogs up much either.. I do think that its funny that it got loose.. Im sure that someone in the Dep. of Homeland fear um.. I mean.. security.. will jump at the chance to add lizards to the restricted list for airliners

__________________
"Life is possible only with illusions. And so, the question for the science of mental health must become an absolutely new and revolutionary one, yet one that reflects the essence of the human condition: On what level of illusion does one live?"
-- Ernest Becker, The Denial of Death

WhoaitsZ

laugh. i don't suggest picking up an aligator

they did a good job.

odd.

raeanna74

I wonder why they would have transported it this way. The cargo areas aren't always pressurized as far as I know. I suppose they would have made sure that the airline they were traveling on was pressurized. It think there could have been a better way to transport this creature. They are cold blooded so temp affects them more too. Definately ODD to say the least. I think that would have been cool to be the one told to go catch the thing. Besides it says that the alligators mouth was still wrapped shut. They cannot open their mouths very easily. A human can hold it shut. It's just very hard for a human to OPEN a gaters mouth. Interesting. Thanks

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"Always learn the rules so that you can break them properly." Dalai Lama
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Litespeed

Oh wow. Interesting. Why in the world would someone fly with two juvenile aligators??? Good thing things couldn't have gotten out of control, though it would have made an interesting story if the gator had munched on a few rabbits or kitties.

Coolidge

HAHA that's the greatest story tonight. Thanks for the laugh