8-foot gator removed from porch as family sleeps inside

BLUFFTON, S.C. -- An alligator known to roam a South Carolina community has met its end after attempting to make its home on a porch.

The Island Packet reports the alligator, measuring 8 feet 6 inches, had been seen around a Bluffton neighborhood for at least a year, and was found in the middle of the street Saturday night, preventing residents from passing. Responding Beaufort County Sheriff's deputies found the reptile had moved onto a nearby front porch and yard.

The homeowners and their visiting grandson were inside and slept through the unfolding scene.

South Carolina Department of Natural Resources spokesman David Lucas says the department contacted a permitted alligator control agent. The alligator was later euthanized.

Lucas says such calls are common during mating season and warm weather.