OCALA, FL (352today.com) – Just when you thought you’d seen it all, an owl gets trapped within the confines of a transformer station.
Those words were likely never muttered before last night when Ocala Fire Rescue (OFR) firefighters at Station 2 were treated to quite a hoot close to home base.
According to OFR, at around 8:30 p.m. on Sunday, a firefighter heard something unorthodox coming from a nearby Ocala Electric Utility (OEU) transformer station.
OFR Captain James Williams IV says the firefighter, described as a “bird guy,” went over to find an owl trapped within the fenced area surrounding the transformer.
Firefighters immediately contacted Rescuing Ocala Wildlife (ROW) for assistance and, after receiving access to the station from OEU, a ROW volunteer arrived to rescue the owl.
The ROW volunteer believes the young owl attempted to glide for the first time and found a landing spot in the transformer station.
After its rescue, the owl quickly became the talk of the town.
“We were taking pictures of the owl because, I mean, it’s as cool as cool can be,” laughs Williams.
After being evaluated, the owl was released into the nearby woods, where Williams says it was reunited with its mother.
OFR anticipates that the owl will soon be able to take flight independently. “It just needs to trade out some fuzz for flight wings,” says Williams.