A California animal control officer helped bring a stranded baby raccoon down from a hangar roof, then worked to reunite the frightened youngster with its mother.
Here's what to know
On Oct. 26, a caller alerted Alameda police dispatchers to a raccoon unable to descend from a hangar roof at Alameda Point, according to the Alameda Post. The caller said the animal had been there overnight and could not find its way down.
"With help from our amazing Public Works Department, Animal Control Officer Emily Crum was safely lifted to the top of the hangar, where she secured the frightened raccoon and brought him back down to solid ground," the police department shared in a Facebook report.
Commenters praised animal control for their actions, with one writing, "You rock."
Another rescue
The raccoon was hardly the first animal that the Alameda animal control officers have helped. In 2024, Alameda ACO Alaina Onesko helped rescue a young Cooper's hawk that had been stuck in a tree on Buena Vista Avenue, the Post reported.
In that rescue, a Public Works employee in a cherry picker broke off a branch to retrieve the frightened bird. The worker then lowered the hawk down to Onesko, who removed debris from the bird's feathers and safely transported it to an animal shelter for treatment and observation.
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What's being done?
As for the raccoon stuck on the top of an old aircraft hangar, once it was safely brought back down to the ground, the animal control officers observed that it was a kit. After that, the mission became reuniting the young raccoon with its mother, the Alameda Post reported.
To do so, Crum sought to place the kit in a location where the mother could hear or smell her baby. Crum found just such a spot at the warehouse for DOER Marine's Deep Ocean Explore Store.
Liz Taylor, the company president, told the Post that Crum had inquired about a quiet, secure location, and Taylor recommended an unused section of their warehouse. The space was outfitted with a small animal crate for shelter and a trail camera to keep watch.
During the night, the trail camera showed the mother raccoon returning and carrying the kit away.
"DOER is here to serve the community, including our furry neighbors," Taylor told the Post.
Where can I learn more?
The following articles cover other instances in which humans have come to the rescue of raccoons in all manner of locations, from a dog's mouth to a highway grate.
• In North Carolina, a resident rescued a baby raccoon from a dog's mouth.
• After an eight-hour drive, a rescuer stopped to help a baby raccoon.
• In New York, beachgoers and lifeguards rescued a raccoon clinging above the waves.
• In Ontario, police helped free a raccoon trapped in a highway grate.
• Massachusetts crews took a raccoon stuck in a grate to a wildlife hospital.
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