Vadodara: Residents of Wardhaman Society in the city’s Karelibaug area were on the edge on Saturday night. Never had they thought that they would come face-to-face with a huge crocodile right outside their homes. A seven-foot-long reptile, probably lost, sauntered into the society and seemed to be moving around looking for a safe space to hide.
A local spotted the croc and alerted other residents, many of whom rushed out of their homes to get a glimpse of the crocodile from up close, while others shot videos on their phones from a safe distance. As the forest department was informed, a team of rescue volunteers reached the spot not knowing that they had quite a big task at hand. The reptile, possibly agitated by the crowd and commotion, thwarted all efforts by rescuers to catch it.
The rescuers initially tried covering its eyes, but the crocodile shook off the cloth. One rescuer then threw a noose around its jaws. But the reptile proved to be too smart as it shook its head and thrashed about so wildly that the noose came off.
It then tried escaping, but couldn’t find an exit. The struggle by the reptile and the team — each trying to win — continued for about an hour. By this time the crocodile was tired and had mellowed down, allowing the rescue team to rope it.
But the team knew that just tying it up wasn’t going to be enough. One of the rescuers sneaked up from behind the reptile and sat on its back, lest it thrashed about. Another rescuer followed suit.
Relieved .