Crime & Safety
Adorable Kitten ‘Fished’ Out of Storm Drain
It took two attempts for Hillsborough County firefighters to save a kitten caught in a Tampa storm drain.
TAMPA, FL — A Hillsborough County Fire Rescue crew gets points for persistence in saving a 2-month-old kitten found trapped in a storm drain Sunday morning.
According to the agency, firefighters received a call around 9 a.m. about the critter stuck in a storm drain under Huntfield Street. The caller said the baby had been trapped for about two days.
When the crew from Engine 39 arrived on scene, they had no trouble seeing the kitten was in need of a rescue. That didn't mean, however, the kitten necessarily saw it that way.
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See also: Blind Fawn Rescued by Deputy
Led by acting Capt. Jayson Lynn, the crew “had to do some out-of-the-box thinking to rescue the kitten,” fire rescue explained in an email to media. Enlisting some help from the original caller and Hillsborough County animal services, they came up with a plan.
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Plan A called for creating a makeshift bridge out of two pieces of baseboard and a towel. Food was placed at the top of the bridge to entice the kitten to come out.
“Unfortunately, it didn't work,” the email said.
Firefighters then moved on to Plan B. That effort called for using a low-pressure hose to spray a light stream of water into the drain. The idea was to get the kitten to move toward a fishing net.
As it turned out, Plan B was a success. The kitten was scooped out with the fishing net and then turned back over to its owner for care, fire rescue officials said.
“A big thanks to Acting Captain Jayson Lynn, Acting Driver Engineer Tony Barrios, Firefighter Eric Tompkins, Animal Control, and everyone else that helped out on scene,” the email said. “Great job guys.”
Firefighters weren’t the only ones to make a great animal save recently. A Hillsborough County Sheriff’s deputy took time out of his normal routine to save a blind fawn that he spotted on the side of Morris Bridge Road last weekend. The creature was taken to a local vet for care and is expected to be transferred to a local zoo for continued assistance.
Photos courtesy of Hillsborough County Fire Rescue
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