MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — There is outrage after a large alligator was killed this week by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources after crossing a road in Myrtle Beach, WPDE reported.
A SCDNR spokesperson said they responded to reports of a 7- to 8-foot alligator in the roadway around 6:45 Wednesday. Lucas said the alligator was removed and euthanized.
He said their typical protocol for handling an alligator crossing a road isto euthanize it.
[Alligator removed from basement to ‘retire’ to animal sanctuary in Myrtle Beach]
South Carolina law says a gator deemed a "nuisance" has to be euthanized when captured by the SCDNR.
Russell Cavender, a local wildlife advocate posted on Facebook about the alligator.
"Whether they're crossing the road, lost in the pool, in someone's backyard, it's considered a nuisance alligator," Cavender said. "We are developing this area quickly and we are destroying their habitat fast, very fast. They have nowhere else to go. They have to cross a road to find another place to live."
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Cavender told ABC15 in May 2019 that his contract with SCDNR was terminated because they found out he wasn't killing the alligators he was sent to deal with. His contract called for him to kill large alligators that he was called in to capture.
"I always had the ability to find a safe place for the alligator and for the people," he said. "A lot of gators have died since I lost my contract last year."
A bill was introduced in the Senate in January 2020. The proposal would amend state law to require SCDNR to set conditions for the humane taking and disposition of alligators, which must include nonlethal removal options. The bill would also remove sanctuaries as a place where an alligator can be taken unless it's deemed a nuisance by the department.
COVID-19 derailed the legislative session this year, so the bill is currently sitting in the Senate Committee on Fish, Game and Forestry.
Cox Media Group
