Would-Be Cat Rescuer Needs His Own Rescue

Firefighters bring down teen from high tree, and the cat was brought down later
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Mar 8, 2022 8:05 AM CST
He Climbed Tree to Save Cat, Needed Saving Himself
This photo provided by the Indianapolis Fire Department shows a 17-year-old boy high up in a tree. The teen had to be rescued.   (Indianapolis Fire Department via AP)

A teenager who scaled a tree at an Indianapolis park to rescue a cat he spotted high up in the branches ended up stuck himself and in need of a rescue, officials said. The 17-year-old boy was at Holliday Park on Indianapolis' north side Saturday afternoon when he saw the cat and decided to rescue it by climbing 35 feet into the tree, said the Indianapolis Fire Department, per the AP. The teen, identified in the release only as “Owen,” told firefighters “he was trying to do a good deed and bring the cat to safety," wrote Rita Reith, battalion chief and the department's spokeswoman.

“While Owen had no trouble climbing up the tree–-his positioning did not allow the same ease for getting down,” she added. Firefighting crews were called to the park and they used a rope system to lower the boy safely to the ground about two hours later. The teen was checked out by medics, found to have only a few scrapes, and was released to his parents, although the cat remained in the tree. “The cat seemed to enjoy the commotion but made no effort to climb down the tree," Reith wrote. Reith said Monday that a 21-year-old woman who was the cat's owner ended up hiring a private company to retrieve the feline.

(More uplifting news stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X