Kitten finds itself in precarious spot below AZ freeway. Troopers had to get creative
After getting distressing call about a person leaning over an edge of an Arizona freeway ramp, troopers made their way to possibly rescue a “suicidal subject.”.
However, when they arrived at the ramp connecting “southbound Loop 101 to westbound (State Route) 202 in Tempe,” they found it was not a man who needed rescuing, the Arizona Department of Public Safety said in a July 24 Instagram post.
The man “was actually trying to help a kitten who somehow found itself stranded on a support pillar just below the transition ramp,” troopers said about the incident that happened in May.
Due to the kitten’s precarious location, firefighters could not help in its rescue, leaving troopers to come up with a creative solution.
First, troopers said they halted the ramp’s traffic.
Then, troopers used a bucket and rope from a good Samaritan.
“They lowered the bucket down through a gap in the wall and dangled it in front of the distressed kitten,” troopers said.
A video shared by the department shows the bucket swaying inches in front of the kitten, which then pokes its head in and sniffs inside.
Leary, the kitten puts its paws in the bucket before leaping in head first, the video shows.
The trooper then hastily reels the bucket up to the freeway as the kitten wobbles about with its tail poking out from the top of it.
As the trooper pulls the bucket up to the freeway and sets it down, he pumps his first in the air.
Though hungry, the kitten was not hurt, according to troopers.
Troopers gave the kitten a ride off the highway, where they handed it over to the good Samaritan who took over caring for it.
Tempe is about 10-mile drive east from Phoenix.
This story was originally published July 25, 2024 at 12:14 PM with the headline "Kitten finds itself in precarious spot below AZ freeway. Troopers had to get creative."
