Deputy finds reported alligator in storage shed was 'pool floatie'

Sept. 9 (UPI) -- A Florida sheriff's deputy responded to a home on a report of an alligator in a storage shed and discovered the apparent reptile actually was an inflatable pool toy.

The Polk County Sheriff's Office said in a Twitter post that Deputy Mark Texler responded to a home on a report of an alligator in a storage shed.

The sheriff's office reported that the woman who called 911 said her husband had spotted the gator while moving some boxes outside their apartment in Winter Haven.

"Deputy Trexler went to a call about an alligator in a storage shed," the tweet said. "He came ... he saw ... he conquered the beast. He even knocked the wind out of it. Literally. The gator turned out to be a pool floatie."