VENICE, Fla. — A big alligator broke into a Florida woman's home late last month.
The homeowner, Mary Hollenback of Venice, is now sharing her story of how it happened.
The gator broke into a home in the Grand Palm community on the west coast of Florida. The area is filled with many houses and ponds where a 7-foot-11 alligator was found in March.
Hollenback first noticed something wasn't right when she heard a strange rattling noise at her screen door.
"I thought somebody who didn't live here was trying to come in thinking that they were probably in the wrong house," Hollenback said. "By the time I got up and went near the front door, the gator was already inside."
The reptile then continued walking down the hallway and made its way into the kitchen. That's when she decided to call 911.
"I tried to sound coherent and basically told him, 'I have an alligator in my house,'" Hollenback said.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and Sarasota County deputies arrived and eventually wrangled the gator out of the house.