AP Video Video shows an eight-foot alligator attacking a worker from the North Carolina Aquarium. (WATCH BELOW) 
 
 A North Carolina man survived a scary brush Tuesday with an eight-foot gator he tried moving from the side of a highway near one of the Tar Heel State's barrier islands, The Associated Press reports. 
 
 Video of the encounter shows the man attempting to grab the animal from behind with his bare hands after dropping a towel on its head. The toothy reptile reacted by turning toward the man, thrashing in a ditch and biting his arm. The man then kicked the gator, which moved away from its would-be captor. 
 
 The gator was later captured and released into a swamp about 30 miles away. 
 
 The man, who’s identity was not released, is an employee at the North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores. 
 
 Though alligators tend to show up in the area from time to time, locals told WSOC-TV they had never seen one so big. 
 
 With News Wire Services ||||| A scientist in North Carolina had a lucky escape when he was attacked by an alligator. 
 
 Mobile phone footage shows the scientist from the North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores trying to move the alligator. 
 
 As he tries to grab the creature, it lashes towards him and bites down on his arm. 
 
 The scientist kicks the alligator and makes his escape.
– A North Carolina aquarium scientist planned to move an alligator from the side of a highway—but the gator had different ideas. As the scientist dropped a towel over the alligator's face and attempted to lift the eight-foot creature with his bare hands, the gator spun around, tripped the man and bit his arm while shaking its head violently. The scientist managed to struggle free from the giant jaws, kick out at the gator, and make his escape. The gator was later captured by a crew and moved to a swamp some 30 miles away, reports the BBC. The scientist was treated and released from a local hospital.