Man arrives home to find gator hanging out in garage

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A man arrived home Friday to find a gator hanging out in his garage.

Chris Winardi said he opened the garage door of his home on Compass Drive after returning home from working out and found an alligator hanging out.

"'There's no way this is real,'" he said of his first thought. "The neighbor was out working on his boat. I turned around to talk to him to get somebody else to confirm that I was seeing what I was actually seeing."

Winardi said he called Animal Control, who eventually sent someone to retrieve the gator.

Winardi said his mom was home at the time.

"She was wondering why I hadn't pulled my car into the garage, so she opened the door to the garage, from the house, and she closed it right afterward," Winardi said.

The gator was calm and hardly moved until Animal Control arrived.

When asked if this will be in the back of his mind every time he pulls up to the garage, Winardi said, "It's something that I'll think about, but this is the first time in I don't know how many years, so I think we're good."

His parting words: "Go gators!"


About the Author:

Dawn Jorgenson, Graham Media Group Branded Content Managing Editor, began working with the group in April 2013. She graduated from Texas State University with a degree in electronic media.