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.
Authorities are investigating an explosion at a home in Arlington, Virginia where police were attempting to serve a search warrant.
A volcanic eruption that began in Indonesia Sunday has left 11 climbers dead and at least a dozen people missing.
Former Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin is back in prison after being stabbed multiple times at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tucson, Arizona.
A former U.S. diplomat has been arrested and accused of being a secret Cuban spy.
The U.S. Air Force has confirmed divers found the remains of five U.S. service members in the wreckage of an Osprey aircraft that crashed off the coast of Japan last week.
Authorities say 33-year-old Jerrid Joseph Powell is due to appear in court Monday.
The Israeli military has renewed its calls for mass evacuations from the southern town of Khan Younis, where tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians have sought refuge in recent weeks.
Three commercial ships were struck by ballistic missiles fired from Houthi-controlled Yemen, the military said, and a U.S. warship shot down three drones in self-defense during the hourslong assault.
A humpback whale made its presence well known in the waters of Seattle.
U.S. officials are urging consumers not to eat cantaloupe products including fruit cups due to a salmonella outbreak.
