Fake alligators at park fooling people into calling 911 to report the danger
By Jason Barry
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MESA, Arizona (KPHO, KTVK) — There’s some fear and confusion at a park in the East Valley where some fake alligators are having people do a double-take.
There’s no reason for anyone to panic, but you wouldn’t know it from the 911 calls that have come in to report alligators in the lake at Riverview Park in Mesa.
“I think there’s an alligator inside one of the water areas,” said one caller to a 911 dispatcher. “There’s like 3 alligators in here,” said another 911 caller. “It actually bit my boyfriend’s fishing line and we had to cut it,” said a third caller.
For the past several weeks, several park visitors have been fooled into thinking real alligators are swimming beneath the surface, ready to pounce on a small child walking by. It turns out the rugged reptiles are not real. “It looks so stinking real,” said park visitor Diane Fuerte. “It does. It freaks me out because I hate alligators. I hate them.”
Arizona’s Family has learned that the crocodile and alligator in the lake are nothing more than foam islands that give ducks, birds and turtles a place to hang out and soak up some sun.
Andrea Moore is the director of Mesa’s Parks and Recreation Department. She confirmed that the city recently installed the fake reptiles, along with some fake islands, as a way to help the turtle population, which often struggles to reach the shore. “First, we tried a dirt ramp that worked a little bit, but the turtles had trouble getting back into the water,” said Moore. “We found one of our vendors had these foam options and they are working out well. The turtles love them.”
Some park visitors think it’s funny that people are confusing the alligator and crocodile in the lake with real-life reptiles. One woman likes to think of them as a new attraction. “I think they are cool,” said Dorris Gorge. “I think they should put in more, maybe two more so people walking around can see it in other sections.”
The city of Mesa is expected to add a couple of foam hippos to the lake in the next few weeks.
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