Raccoon That People Thought Was A Cat Climbs Utility Pole

A Levittown raccoon had an eventful Monday as he climbed a pole in an Elderberry neighborhood backyard and stayed there for several hours.

A couple living a few houses down from the backyard on Elm Lane where the raccoon scaled the pole first noticed the animal at about 9 a.m. The couple called the Falls Township Police Department, who in turn called animal control. When animal control came out, they said they could not help the animal, which they identified at the time nearly everyone thought it was a cat.

PECO sent nearby crews working on a power issue to the scene after calls were put in. The crew went to Evergreen Lane, where they set up and prepared to climb the ladder to retrieve the animal.

Upon climbing the ladder, a PECO crew member realized the cat was actually a raccoon, and the worker withdrew to come up with a new plan.

A couple of minutes later, the climbed raccoon came down on its own.

A local tree crew volunteered to help get the animal down but arrived as the raccoon escaped himself.

Falls Fire Marshal Rich Dippolito said the fact that the animal was on a utility pole in high winds could cause a problem if firefighters made their way up to rescue it.

PECO spokesman Ben Armstrong said the utility company crews have before helped save animals that were trapped and often work with local emergency responders to rescue trapped creatures on utility poles.