It’s common to run into an alligator in the wild in southeast Georgia, but not so common in a Hinesville subdivision which is where one wayward gator ended up Friday morning.

David Curtis who lives in the 200 block of Barcalay Lane in the Lexington Subdivision just off Airport Road, encountered an estimated 5-foot gator making its way out of the wooded area onto the streets of Barcalay Lane. Curtis, who is originally from Louisiana, was on his way to enjoy a day of fishing and spotted the large reptile walking on a concrete drainage embankment. Curtis said he thought to himself, “This is dangerous,” because there are a lot of children in his neighborhood, and so he sprang into action. Curtis said it took more than an hour for him to wear the gator down. He enlisted help from neighbor and New York transplant Michael McMullen before Curtis could hop on the gator’s back and tape his mouth shut using packing tape. McMullen said the gator put up a fight before Curtis was able to tape his mouth shut. Curtis, when asked why he took on the gator instead of waiting for a trapper to handle the agitated beast said, “I’m from Louisiana and this is routine to me.” McMullen, on the other hand said, “I’m from upstate New York, and this is my first time dealing with something like this.” The gator was taken away by a trapper and its fate is unknown.