By Irene Wright
The Charlotte Observer
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — A “concerned resident” who heard a strange noise coming from a storm drain helped bring about a joyful reunion in Tennessee.
The noise was the cries of a baby animal, and they immediately called the fire department.
Firefighters arrived and took a closer look inside the storm drain.
Inside was a tiny, baby deer, trapped in the confined space, according to a July 10 Facebook post from the Johnson City Firefighters Association.
The firefighters jumped into action, Lieutenant Nathan Carrier with the Johnson City Fire Department told McClatchy News in a Facebook message.
The rescue “required delicate maneuvering to ensure the safety of the baby deer,” Carrier said, and firefighters above ground monitored the air quality in the drain.
The firefighters always carry pet CPR masks that can be used on a variety of animals during a rescue, Carrier said, but luckily the deer and the firefighters were breathing fine.
As the firefighters spent the better part of an hour working to free the baby, its mother stood “anxiously” in a nearby field, Carrier said.
The deer was “seemingly aware of her baby’s predicament,” Carrier said, but she stayed a safe distance away from the rescue.
The baby deer was likely only a few weeks old, based on its size, but to the best of the firefighters knowledge, was uninjured.
The deer was gently lifted out of the drain and placed in the field where it joined its mother, Carrier said.
“The successful rescue operation was met with relief and gratitude from the concerned citizen … and onlookers, who were moved by the heartwarming reunion of the baby deer with its mother,” Carrier said.
Johnson City is in the northeast corner of Tennessee, about 150 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina.
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