WBTW (Florence, S Carolina ) 27 July 07 Neighbors still uneasy after alligator is caught
Earlier this month Hartsville Police filed a permit to have an alligator removed because it posed a threat to Prestwood residents and their pets.
"Even grown-ups are scared of it, they just think I wouldn't want my children going on that lake," said Ben Gupton, Prestwood Lake resident.
But, Ben Gupton said it's a lake that’s filled with more than one danger.
"I think that they should stick around here for a while and actually keep going and looking for them because they didn't catch them all, there's no way they caught all of them," said Gupton.
Gupton fears if there are other alligators as large as one recently caught, someone could eventually get hurt.
"You could tell a person a thousand times there's an alligator in that lake and it can cause problems. Well people understand that it can cause problems, it's just like a wake up call," said Gupton.
In the meantime one Prestwood Lake alligator has been captured and destroyed.
There are an estimated 100,000 alligators in South Carolina.
The state DNR said it averages at least one complaint a day about alligators.
Currently the DNR issues a limited number of permits for taking gators.
Neighbors still uneasy after alligator is caught