Alligator caught living at Pennsylvania sewer plant, fueling talk of urban legend
An alligator living in a sewer plant would be unique, even in the South.
But in Mineral Springs, Pennsylvania?
Crowds actually formed outside the local sewer plant over the weekend, according to media outlets.
TV stations showed footage of people pressed against the fence with binoculars, a little girl with a sign that said “Pet the gator $10” and even a guy with a fishing pole, trying to catch the alligator like a bass.
The revered reptile even had a Facebook page (with 89 followers) under the name “Chet, The Mineral Springs Gator.”
“This is the most excitement we have seen in Mineral Springs,” alligator fan Travesty Krupa told TV station WTAJ outside the sewer plant.
The fun ended Monday morning. After nearly a week of empty traps and nets, the gator was captured by a private contractor hired by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, reported WJAC.
Photos of the captured alligator were posted by news outlets on several Facebook pages and they showed the “huge” gator was only about 2 and a half feet long.
End of story?
Not so fast.
News of the capture was scarcely an hour old when social media commenters seized on the idea that proof of a long debated urban legend had been found in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania.
Alligators were indeed “living in the sewers” of America.
“Working in wastewater myself, I’ve seen video of gators trapped in sewer... drains and other parts of the systems,” posted Jen Costello on Facebook, after the capture was announced.
“Wonder how it got there,” asked Tracey Giacomi on Facebook. “Would this mean there is probably more in the area, since it’s very young?”
“That’s a baby. The mamma and daddy got to be near by,” posted Jem Rose Koontz on Facebook.
So never mind that an alligator was captured in Pennsylvania, of all places.
It’s the alligators still lurking in the sewers that have people in Mineral Springs watching their backs.
This story was originally published June 26, 2018 at 4:32 PM with the headline "Alligator caught living at Pennsylvania sewer plant, fueling talk of urban legend."