Kitten stuck in pipe beneath Pittsburgh street rescued by first responders
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A tiny kitten is alive after a complicated rescue in the city of Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh police said they were called to Lilac Street and Murray Avenue just before midnight on Tuesday for reports of an animal stuck inside a storm drain. Responding officers could hear a kitten crying.
Firefighters arrived and removed two drainage grates from the street. Crews then realized that the kitten was stuck between the storm drains in a pipe underneath the street.
Just before midnight on June 4, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police were called to the intersection of Lilac St. and Murray Ave....
Posted by Pittsburgh Public Safety Department on Wednesday, June 5, 2024
EMS rescue crews arrived next and determined it was nearly impossible to rescue the kitten from the surface. After determining there was a safe operating environment, an EMS crew chief donned the air supply and went down the main drainage line.
Pittsburgh Public Safety detailed the rescue in a Facebook post, writing, "It was decided to flush the line with a small amount of water to move the kitten out of the lateral line into the main where the Crew Chief could capture the kitten. Although this worked, the kitten was still out of reach of the paramedic. Using various tools, he was able to gently nudge the kitten close enough to capture it with a net supplied by animal control."
The weeks-old kitten was a little soggy and scared but ultimately unhurt. Animal control who were also at the scene officers took the kitten.
"Pittsburgh Public Safety is on hand to assist all Pittsburgh residents, both large and small!" Pittsburgh Public Safety wrote on Facebook.