WATCH: Man catches alligator with his bare hands

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC/Gray News) – A man in Georgia was caught on video battling an alligator with his bare hands at a public park.

Marquell T. White told WTOC the gator was hiding behind the swing set, and he didn’t want anyone to get blindsided and attacked.

He only hesitated a moment before grabbing the 7-foot-long reptile with his hands.

“It was a healthy fear. I respected the power I knew the gator had,” White said.

Trapper Jack, a licensed catcher for the state of Georgia, saw tracks of the gator being dragged across the playground the next day.

“We could tell something had a fight with the gator in that fenced-in area,” Trapper Jack said.

Trapper Jack said White was lucky the gator didn’t attack him.

“That is very, very dangerous to them and whoever else may be watching,” Trapper Jack said.

White said people might joke around about him catching the alligator, but there’s a bigger problem that needs attention from the City of Savannah – an unmaintained park.

“It wasn’t just the fact the gator was there. Gators come and go...you couldn’t see the gator because of grass and foliage,” White said.

The City of Savannah issued a statement saying a crew has begun to mow the park.

“There have been servicing delays partly due to the abundance of rain experienced recently,” the statement said.

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