CLEVELAND, Texas – A nearly 12-foot gator held up traffic on US 59 in the Cleveland area overnight.
Drivers were forced to hit the brakes when the stubborn gator refused to move. It took a Chance encounter to get him off the busy highway.
Trapper Chance Ward said Cleveland police called and asked if he could help capture the creature so it could be safely relocated.
"When they call, I stop and jump to their tune," said Ward, who's known as the contract cowboy in Liberty County.
Police blocked off the highway and with a game warden's approval, Ward when to work to wrangle the gator.
Photos: Nearly 12-foot gator holds up traffic on US 59
But it wasn't giving up without a fight.
"The gator had pretty much set his way – he was not gonna move," Ward said.
During the struggle, the gator was bruised up after rolling a couple of times on the pavement.
Cleveland cops and firefighters jumped in to help move it out of harm's way.
"They were completely going off of my guide and hoping that I wasn't telling them something that could cost them a leg," Ward said.
It took about 20 mins to get him calm, tie him up and load him on a truck.
They named the gator George and joked about reading him his rights.
While waiting for the paperwork to release George back to the wild, they snapped a few pics, including one in front of a Whataburger.
The caption? "Only in Texas you'll see a gator and a Whataburger in the same picture."