Buffalo Township police, firefighters and a construction crew rescue 3 ducklings from storm drain

Three ducklings were rescued from a storm drain Friday afternoon at a GetGo gas station thanks to quick work by Buffalo Township police, firefighters and a construction crew.

Officer Erik Bergstrom said he received the call around 4:30 p.m. for the young waterfowl that fell through a sewer grate near the entrance of the convenience store along South Pike Road (Route 356).

A woman working at GetGo later that evening said it was her father-in-law that made the call to 911. She declined to speak further about the incident.

Bergstrom arrived on scene and knew he needed help getting the ducklings out of danger.

“I get there and apparently mama duck was walking baby ducks, and the mom kept walking with the other ones after some babies fell in (the storm drain),” he said. “I had to find the little fellas. I could hear them through the storm sewer making their little noises.”

Bergstrom called township firefighters for assistance. One of them, Tyler Hill, works for Holbein, which is a construction company headquartered in Freeport that has a location in the township, too.

Hill said when he arrived at GetGo a construction crew was passing by on its way to Freeport.

He called them over and they were able to open the grate, but the ducklings were too far back in the pipe to reach.

Firefighters pumped some water into the system to flush them out and Mike Fox, one of the construction crew members, was able to lift the birds to safety.

“We got the grate open up rather quickly,” Hill said. “It was probably within 10 to 15 minuties we had them recused. It was a pretty unique call for us. I heard other fire companies get dispatched to similar incidents. For us, that was a first in a long time.

“Fortunately we had all the right resources in the area at the right time.”

Hill said the fire chief saw a mama duck and her ducklings by Buffalo Creek while responding to the gas station. Firefighters took the ducklings down Monroe Road to the creek in an effort to reunite them.

Responders believe they were able to find each other downstream.

Bergstrom said the rescue was a great example of teamwork.

“The extrication was a success,” Bergstrom said. “We’re not just here to answer calls for people. We’re here to answer calls for animals, too.”