KUALA NERUS: A water monitor lizard weighing 60kg was captured at a house in Taman Permint near Seberang Takir, Terengganu, Wednesday (Dec 22) morning.
Civil servant Ronzi Abdullah, 50, said his daughter ran into the 2.7m-long lizard while warming up the car’s engine to go to work.
“My daughter was alone at home and while waiting for the engine to heat up, she went out to throw garbage in front of the house, before noticing the lizard in front of the door.
“Shocked to see the huge lizard, she immediately closed the grille door to stop it from escaping and called me at work. The lizard had likely been hiding under her car,” he said when met Wednesday.
He said this was the second incident that occurred in the residential area after a similar large-sized reptile was found in his neighbour’s house about three months ago.
Meanwhile, the Kuala Terengganu/Kuala Nerus Civil Defence Force Operations Team officer Lt M (PA) Edie Azhar Ramli said they received a distress call on the matter at 10am Tuesday.
He said a five-member team took 30 minutes to capture the reptile given its large size and aggressive behaviour.
“A lizard of this size is very dangerous because it can eat or injure babies and can also hurt children with its tail,” he said, adding that the animal will be released to its original habitat far from the residential area.
Edie Azhar also did not rule out the possibility of the lizard showing up due to clogged drains following the monsoon season, allowing the reptile to move away from its natural habitat. – Bernama