Rhode Islanders banded together to rescue a resident’s pet cat, Pixie, after she weathered two days being stuck in a tree during the state’s historic February blizzard.
The Eastern United States has been wracked with severe winter weather over the last week, with Providence, Rhode Island taking the “all time record” for snowfall with 37.9″ of powder as of Monday, February 23.
The freezing conditions lasted around 36 hours, with ‘Winter Storm Hernando‘ getting crowned the heaviest US snowstorm in a decade. Residents were forced to stay indoors for warmth… but not everyone was able to seek shelter from the biting winds.
Rhode Islanders rally to save cat trapped in tree during brutal winter storm
A pet cat in Eastern Providence, Rhode Island, was caught outside in the snow during the worst of the blizzard, trapped in a tree for two days.
The domestic shorthair, named Pixie, refused to leave the tree despite her owners’ best efforts, with fire crews and police officers saying there was nothing they could do in the extreme weather.
Desperate to rescue the kitty, Rhode Islander Heather MacKinnon posted about the situation on the NextDoor app. Matthew Lyons, a worker at a local Iron Works factory, and his sister saw the post the next day and came over to help.
Lyons used a chicken-wire fence to scale the roughly 40-foot tree, securing Pixie inside a backpack before climbing back down to the snow below.
“She wanted to be safe. She was just petrified, overall freezing. Couldn’t stop shaking,” Lyons told Boston dot com. “For about half the climb down, I put her in my sweatshirt and let her head peek out so she could breathe.”
Pixie’s owner was delighted to have their furry companion back safe and sound. Reports state that the cat is in good health and is staying warm inside with her people.
“They were very happy and relieved that the cat was down,” Lyons recalled. “They almost couldn’t believe it.”
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