A high-stakes misadventure for a mischievous Sundre feline that found itself stuck precariously perched atop a power pole last week turned out to be a fairly speedy, safe and well-executed rescue.
A picture of a black cat clinging on the top of the pole on 9th Avenue and 2nd Street NE was posted on social media on the morning of Wednesday, March 22. The ensuing community responses led to the Town of Sundre's peace officer attending the scene, and before long he contacted FortisAlberta for assistance.
"One of our powerline technicians did respond to a call," FortisAlberta spokesperson Alana Antonelli confirmed during a phone interview with the Round Up last week, adding the call came in around 10:30-11 a.m.
All said and done, the rescue effort ó which involved the use of a Fortis bucket pickup truck ó lasted about 15 minutes from the time it took the technician to reach the curious kitty and safely bring it back down. Although not unheard of, such incidents are not exactly commonplace either, she said.
"We would get called out, in an area like Sundre, three to five times a year for something like that."
From a public safety perspective, residents are urged to immediately contact Fortis in such scenarios by calling 310-9473 (WIRE) without dialing an area code, she said.
"Do not try to rescue the cat yourself."
Last week's successful rescue was a good news story, she said.
The feline's family seems to agree.
"It was great," said Stefanie Couture, whose common-law partner of almost three years Cory Gray initially noticed the social media post of the family cat, Minou, being stuck on the pole.
The Fortis technician was "super kind" and arrived as soon as possible, she said.
"I cried when he got him down," she said with a chuckle.
Couture's seven-year-old daughter Lexie was away on a sleepover at the time but was brought up to speed through a live video communication stream, and was eager to see her feline friend after hearing about the rescue.
The mother also expressed her gratitude for the peace officer's diligent response.
"He was the one who knew who to call," said Couture, calling the officer "super friendly."
Additionally, not ending up with a big bill came as a pleasant surprise, she said, expressing her gratitude for the company's assistance.
"You pay for everything these days, but they didn't charge us anything."
The successful rescue bid also did not go unnoticed by other members of the community either.
"Not all heroes wear capes, but the Fortis linemen should 'cause they are an awesome bunch of guys!" posted Theo Gafner on the online community discussion.
