2,000 alligators prepped for Hurricane Irma at Gatorland

ORLANDO, Fla. — Update: Gatorland will reopen Wednesday.

There are more than 2,000 alligators living in Gatorland, and caretakers have prepped them for the Hurricane Irma’s powerful punch.

Mike Hileman, who works at Gatorland in Orlando, told Channel 9 reporter Karla Ray that they were ready for the storm.

“The alligators, they’re doing what they do. They’ve been fighting these things for about 65 million years. They don’t really have any preferences,” Hileman said.

Hileman said the gators will likely take breaths and sit at the bottom of the lake.

Photos: Gators prepped for big storm

“We have 6-and 8-foot fences that take care of all the enclosures inside the park, and then there is another 8-foot fence that goes all the way around Gatorland property,” he said.

Ray asked whether there was any concern about the possibility of a gator escaping during the storm.

“Even if a tree falls in an enclosure, and an alligator was to come out of the enclosure, we still have all those fences that they would have to navigate through. So, we’re not losing any gators,” Hileman said.

Raw Video: Alligators prepped at Gatorland ahead of Irma

Hileman said residents shouldn’t worry about their gators roaming around town.

“If you see an alligator swimming on the street, it’s not ours,” he said.

Gatorland also houses furry creatures, such as raccoons and bobcats. Hileman said those animals will be taken to a secure building.

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