Gator Forces Teen Up Tree, Then Waits, Hissing

A Florida deputy arrived and shot the alligator
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 3, 2018 8:26 AM CDT
Alligator Trees a Teen, Deputy Comes to Rescue
File photo of an alligator.   (AP Photo/Tyler Kaufman)

It is a 911 call that is pure Florida: "My daughter’s stuck in a frickin’ tree and there’s gators surrounding her!" a woman tells the dispatcher. "Oh my God! Please hurry! Please hurry!" All ended well, except for the gator. As the Orlando Sentinel reports, 15-year-old Jordan Broderick was floating along on a raft on a creek in Ocala National Forest when the alligator starting quickly heading toward her. Jordan grabbed a tree limb and climbed up the tree overhanging the creek, but the alligator remained in the water below, hissing, according to a police report.

“My presence failed to scare the alligator away, and it began encroaching on my area at which time I fired one single 223 round from my Bushmaster AR15 killing the alligator,” wrote the responding deputy. He estimated the gator was about 11 feet long, reports ClickOrlando, and the deputy says Jordan didn't think she could hang on in the tree much longer. She was up there for about an hour, all told. The latter website adds some gator info: Hissing is generally a defensive behavior, suggesting that the alligator viewed Jordan more as a predator than a meal. (More alligator stories.)

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