Homer Glen Couple Rescues Wounded Eagle
HOMER GLEN, Ill. (CBS) -- A southwest suburban couple saved a wounded bald eagle from falling prey to coyotes after spotting the bird in their yard on Friday.
WBBM Newsradio's Bernie Tafoya reports Georgene Beechick spotted the injured eagle in her field in Homer Glen. It appeared the bird might have been hit by a car.
She feared, with darkness falling, coyotes likely would be on the prowl, and would make short work of the bird.
"I came in the house, and I tried calling animal control, and I couldn't get anybody. Everything was automated. It was about 5:30 on Friday," she said. "We have quite a few coyotes out here at night, and you'll hear them. So we were concerned that he might have been harmed if he was left alone by himself, wounded."
Eventually she and her husband Pete reached out to wildlife expert John Basile, who put the eagle in a cage, and contacted Illinois Department of Natural Resources Conservation Police, who took the bird to a veterinarian downstate.
"This is a pretty impressive thing when you find an eagle and realize what it represents. It's a pretty powerful thing," Beechick said. "We got the news yesterday that he's okay."