It’s no urban legend: An alligator was found in a chilly New York City lake on Sunday, far from the subtropical and tropical climates where such creatures thrive.
The 4-foot (1.2-meter) reptile was pulled from Prospect Park Lake in Brooklyn around 8:30 a.m. and taken to an animal care center and then the Bronx Zoo for medical treatment and rehabilitation.
City officials said the gator appeared lethargic and possibly cold-shocked. It was likely dumped as an unwanted pet, they said. Releasing animals in city parks is illegal. Police are investigating.
For years, New Yorkers have pondered the myth that alligators roam the city’s sewer system, even celebrating Alligators in the Sewers Day as an unofficial February holiday.
Sightings like Sunday’s help keep the urban legend alive, but experts throw cold water on the sewer theory. Alligators aren’t suited to the sewer system's frigid, toxic environment, they say.
Police said about five million bees escaped from crates near Toronto after a spill.
A swimmer in Texas died after contracting an infection caused by a brain-eating amoeba.
Two adults and four children were hospitalized after a shooting in Peoria, Ill.
Cheddar News checks in with a coast-to-coast forecast of the weather for Thursday, August 30, 2023.
Residents in Northern California to have power cut as fire weather intensifies in the region.
Inmate forced to give birth in jail cell after begging for medical help.
A Connecticut man was charged with grand larceny after finding a bag of cash outside of a bank and keeping it.
The FBI announced it took down a criminal ransomware network used for hundreds of thousands of cyber attacks.
Cheddar News checks in with a coast-to-coast forecast of the weather for Wednesday, August 30, 2023, including the latest on Hurricane Idalia.
A 127-year-old water main under New York's Times Square gave way early Tuesday, flooding midtown streets and the city's busiest subway station. Service was restored with delays by midday.
