City park workers shocked themselves — and passersby – when they dragged a four-foot-long alligator from Brooklyn’s Prospect Park Lake on Sunday morning.

The alligator was reportedly spotted by park visitors early on Sunday, floating in the lake in an area that was often popular with children. The animal was lethargic, authorities say, possibly in shock because the cold temperatures in the lake did not meet those of the animal’s natural habitat.

Bring him south!! Poor guy!

Workers stunned as 4-foot alligator is hauled from Brooklyn's Prospect Park Lake https://t.co/fFHXoOoKYj

— Kerri Rawson (@KerriRawson) February 19, 2023

According to a report published Sunday by Spectrum News NY1, the alligator was taken first to an animal care center and then to the Bronx Zoo. No one was injured by the animal while it was in the park.

Authorities appeared to suggest that the alligator could possibly have been someone’s pet — and that the person had attempted to release it into the wild — and they warned against others who might be tempted to take similar actions.

“Parks are not suitable homes for animals not indigenous to those parks-domesticated or otherwise. In addition to the potential danger to park goers this could have caused, releasing non-indigenous animals or unwanted pets can lead to the elimination of native species and unhealthy water quality,” a spokesperson for the department said in a statement, adding that such actions could prove dangerous for the animals as well.

The alligator, at the time it was retrieved from the lake, was “very lethargic and possibly cold shocked since it is native to warm, tropical climates.”

A man — who gave only the name Moses — told The New York Post, “If I saw that gator, I would have kicked it back in the water! You’d never expect to see something like that here. But man, I feel bad for it. It shouldn’t be in a lake. Animals are like people, you know?”

“What? An alligator?! OK … oh, my goodness,” 37-year-old father Vijay Jacob told the Post. “That’s pretty terrifying since this part is a pretty kids-dominated section of the park. We come here a lot, but I’d never expect to see an alligator here. Maybe that’s why it’s so abandoned here today.”

Utilities in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky shut Ohio River water intake valves early Sunday morning over concerns about contamination by hazardous materials from a train that derailed in East Palestine, Ohio.

The two utilities, Greater Cincinnati Water Works (GCWW) and Northern Kentucky Water District (NKWD), said they are taking precautions as testing found at least low levels of chemicals from the toxic spill in some places at intakes along the waterway amid reports of fish dying en masse in local waterways and East Palestine residents reporting ailments such as headaches and rashes.

After the Norfolk Southern freight train derailment on February 3, crews executed what authorities said was a controlled burn of hazardous chemicals from cars that were in danger of exploding, prompting temporary evacuations and a large plume of smoke over the small town on the Pennsylvania border.

“Emergency responders were able to quickly respond and contain most of the chemicals,” NKWD said in a press release. NKWD said one of the chemicals, butyl acrylate, “was detected at low levels in the Ohio River far upstream of our water supply intakes.”

Butyl acrylate “is a clear liquid with a sweet odor used in arts and crafts, adhesives, flooring, sinks, bathtubs, to name just a few of the uses of the chemical,” NKWD said.

GCWW said low levels of butyl acrylate were believed to have “seeped” into the Ohio River through a small creek about 300 miles north of Cincinnati.

By Sunday afternoon, GCWW reported “2-Ethyl-1-hexanol was detected. This compound is commonly used in industrial applications including for flavorings and fragrances.”

BREAKING: Greater Cincinnati Water Works is keeping its intake CLOSED after reportedly detecting a compound upstream.

“2-Ethyl-1-hexanol was detected. This compound is commonly used in industrial applications including for flavorings and fragrances.”

FULL RELEASE⬇️ @WLWT pic.twitter.com/b0U3Qqu2sA

— Danielle Dindak (@danielledindak) February 19, 2023

NKWD and GCWW, each of which reportedly serve hundreds of thousands of customers, said they will continue testing in coordination with the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission and assured the public they have treatment processes in place. The utilities said they will rely on reserves until regulators are certain water from the Ohio River is safe.

Norfolk Southern says it is working with local, state, and federal leaders and the community affected by the derailment in East Palestine. That hasn’t stopped a number of lawsuits to accumulate as outrage grows, spurred in part by videos of showing an oily sheen from chemicals in local waterways.

Visited a local creek in East Palestine today. These waterways are still very polluted. It’s time for Norfolk Southern to finish the cleanup. Check this video out: pic.twitter.com/4lsHBmrMJj

— J.D. Vance (@JDVance1) February 16, 2023

After the fire went out on February 8, the Environment Protection Agency said on Tuesday its air monitoring had “not detected any levels of health concern in the community that are attributed to the train derailment.”

Ohio Republican Governor Mike DeWine’s office said Friday testing results from East Palestine’s municipal water source determined that municipal drinking water is safe to drink, but urged locals who get their water from private wells to use bottled water until their water is tested.

Also on Friday, DeWine released a joint statement with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Regional Administrator Thomas Sivak, announcing FEMA aid would be on the way after the Biden administration indicated the train derailment did not qualify for federal disaster aid.

“FEMA and the State of Ohio have been in constant contact regarding emergency operations in East Palestine,” the joint statement said. “U.S. EPA and Ohio EPA have been working together since day one. Tomorrow, FEMA will supplement federal efforts by deploying a Senior Response Official along with a Regional Incident Management Assistance Team (IMAT) to support ongoing operations, including incident coordination and ongoing assessments of potential long-term recovery needs.”