LOCALS in a Far North Queensland town were caught between a croc and a hard place yesterday after the 3.5m long reptile swaggered up the street and into a backyard.

Police were called to the Esplanade in Karumba to deal with the croc, which had been lying in a backyard from around 6am until it decided to move out to the front of the property for the rest of the day.

Acting Sergeant Jim Richards said it was the first time in his 10 years in Karumba that anything like this had ever happened.

Officers initially used wheelie bins in an attempt to funnel the croc back into the Norman River, but it became apparent that the giant reptile wasn’t going to comply with official direction.

“He moved from the rear of the garden to the front of the park area, so we formulated a plan to use some bales of hay to make a pen,” Mr Richards said.

“Just to stop him from going anywhere, we didn’t want him wandering around the streets.”

“Once he got under the shade of a Frangipani tree, he wasn’t going anywhere.”

A sprinkler was switched on to keep the mammoth salty cool until Wildlife officers arrived from Cairns at 7.30pm.

Acting Sergeant Richards said the incident quickly garnered popularity on Facebook and turned into a rudimentary New Year’s Eve attraction.

“People came from everywhere to check out the croc,” he said.

The unnamed croc has been relocated safely to a facility in Mission Beach.