Security camera alerts homeowners to 8-foot alligator in Parrish: 'It was pretty fun'

Security camera alerts homeowners to 8-foot alligator in Parrish: ‘It was pretty fun’

What started as a report of a smaller gator in a Parrish yard turned into a much larger situation for the homeowners and Manatee County deputies.

admin September 17, 2026 2 minutes read

PARRISH, Fla. – What started as a report of a smaller gator in a Parrish yard turned into a much larger situation for the homeowners and Manatee County deputies.

Parrish alligator sighting

What we know:

A call came in last week reporting a possible 4- to 5-foot alligator.

Bianca Fourie was about to go to sleep when her AI security camera sent an alert showing the reptile roaming around outside.

Her boyfriend, Michael Yee, said he did not believe it at first because the AI system often gets things wrong, but he soon received text messages from Fourie while his neighbor tried calling him because the alligator was hitting the fence.

The neighbor was the first to call law enforcement to come out. When deputies arrived, the alligator turned out to be over 8 feet long.

Response details

What we don’t know:

Officials have not shared how long the alligator was in the neighborhood before the security system spotted it.

Florida homeowners share experience

What they’re saying:

Yee, a Florida native who was out of town at the time, said he was floored by the size of the reptile.

“I didn’t really believe that there actually was, because the AI gets it wrong quite often,” Yee said. “Until I started getting text messages from Bianca. My neighbor tried calling me because the alligator was hitting the fence and I think that the neighbor actually was the first one to call the police to come out.”

Courtesy: Michael Yee

Fourie said seeing the massive reptile so close was a unique experience.

“Yes, I’ve seen them in alligator farms and like zoos and stuff like that, but never like that close and not in a like, enclosed, like space or area,” Fourie said. “So it was pretty fun. I liked it.”