web1_TTL090615shimko.jpg

Rev. Joseph and Patricia May Shimko

web1_ttl090615moreckbdy.jpg

Avery Moreck

KINGSTON — Lisa Liebetrau was with her husband on a typical morning walk on Wednesday along the river levee.

The two were behind the Kingston Maintenance Building and near the railroad bridge, when their walk became anything but ordinary thanks to the cries of a stranded kitten.

Liebetrau’s husband heard the cry of the kitten coming from somewhere near the bridge, which got louder as they got closer to the bridge.

“We could hear it from the top of the train tracks, which were … 30 feet high,” she explained.

Liebetrau wanted to find a way to climb up to find the kitten, but decided against it. Liebetrau’s husband suggested that they call the Kingston Fire Department, but she said at the time that she thought that firefighters only saved kittens in the movies.

Liebetrau went down to the fire department, where she repeatedly pressed the station’s call button, and eventually led the crews to where the distressed kitten was. Liebetrau explained that crews were initially going to bring in a ladder truck to reach the kitten, but said it was out on another call.

Instead, Liebetrau said one of the deputies climbed up on one of the blocks of the support beams of the bridge to see if he could find the kitten. With the use of a ladder, crews were able to bring the crying kitting down from the bridge’s support beams.

He would earn the name “Lucky” after his rescue.

“He was a lot smaller than I expected him to be,” Liebetrau said. “He was really loud. We could hear him all the way up on the berm, he was just screaming.”

Liebertrau thanked the officials involved in the rescue, and called their acts of heroism “pretty impressive.”

“I’m surprised that they made the effort to rescue a kitten,” she said.

<strong>What’s next for Lucky?</strong>

For now, Liebetrau’s daughter, Victoria, and other family members are all pitching in to take care of Lucky. They estimate that he is only a few weeks old. He requires constant daily feedings.

They tried to take him to Blue Chip Animal Farm in Dallas, but they were turned away due to the number of cats already housed there.

“They said they were full,” Liebetrau said. “They have over 200 kittens right now.”

Victoria, 17, explained that her family has adopted and given homes to about 40 cats from her grandmother’s home.

Taking care of Lucky, she said, was nothing out of the ordinary.

“I love cats,” Victoria said. “It’s just the best thing ever.”

Lucky isn’t the only cat the Liebetrau has seen on her walks along the levee. She suspects that some may be from owners that simply abandon them, and she hopes it’s a trend that stops.

“There are plenty of people out there that would take them,” she said.

She also encouraged residents to continue to support agencies like their local fire departments and shelters like Blue Chip Animal Farm so that more animals can be helped.
<div class="neFileBlock">
<div class="neFile">

<img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/web1_lucky011.jpg" alt="" />
<div class="neCaption">Lisa Liebetrau, left, and her daughter, Victoria, with their kitten, Lucky, underneath the train tresle in Kingston where Lisa found Lucky recently on one of her walks along the river levee.</div>
</div>
<div class="metaInfo">https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/web1_lucky011.jpgLisa Liebetrau, left, and her daughter, Victoria, with their kitten, Lucky, underneath the train tresle in Kingston where Lisa found Lucky recently on one of her walks along the river levee.</div>
<div class="neFile">

<img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/web1_lucky021.jpg" alt="" />
<div class="neCaption">Lucky is held by Victoria Liebetrau.</div>
</div>
<div class="metaInfo">https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/web1_lucky021.jpgLucky is held by Victoria Liebetrau.</div>
</div>
<div class="metaInfo">Firefighters save cat stuck on Kingston railroad span</div>
<div class="metaInfo">

By Travis Kellar

tkellar@www.timesleader.com

&nbsp;

</div>
<div class="metaInfo">

Reach Travis Kellar at 570-991-6389 or on Twitter @TLNews

&nbsp;

</div>

Woman, firefighters rescue kitten from railroad bridge