Mount Greenwood Neighbors Rally To Save Baby Ducks Trapped In Sewer

MOUNT GREENWOOD — Kylee Tenison was driving to work Thursday morning when she noticed something that seemed off.

“I saw a duck on the street and I thought, ‘That’s weird, just one duck alone.’ Then I noticed that it was circling the sewer,” Tenison said.

The Mount Greenwood resident and junior at the University of Iowa realized the duck’s babies might have fallen into the sewer on the 10400 block of South Hamlin Avenue when she drove by. Tenison and her sister decided to pull over and take a look for themselves.

“We heard a bunch of quacking from inside the sewer and you could see their splashing when we looked down. The mom was freaking out and going crazy,” Tenison said.

At about 8:20 a.m., the sisters called 311 to report the trapped ducklings and after talking with their parents, posted about the situation on a local Facebook group.

“We had to get to work. I wish I could have stayed to help but we had to leave,” Tenison said.

Within a few minutes, their Facebook post started to gain traction with neighbors responding. About 30 minutes later, Tenison said a neighbor commented that people helped get the ducklings out of the sewer and reunited with their mother.

“I was so happy,” she said. “All my coworkers even said how exciting it was that they were finally safe and back with their mother.”

After seeing Tenison’s post, Kate Barone decided to drive past the block while taking her son to summer camp at Brother Rice High School.

“I didn’t see them or any activity over there, but by the time I was coming back from dropping off my son I noticed they were crossing the street. I figured it had to be the same ducks that were posted about because these guys were pretty new,” Barone said.

Barone saw the ducks crossing 103rd Street near Lawndale Avenue — about a block away from where the ducklings were rescued. Watching the reunited mother and ducklings cross 103rd Street brought a wave of emotions for Barone.

“As a mom, my first reaction was to stop and get these guys to safety, to make sure they were not in harm’s way because 103rd Street is pretty busy,” she said.

Once the ducks made their way across the street without issue, Barone said she believes they were making their way to Saint Xavier University’s Lake Marion.

Block Club visited Lake Marion Thursday afternoon and noticed an abundance of wildlife enjoying the summer weather in the small lake. A group of ducks that looked similar to the ones rescued were seen swimming across the water before stepping into a smaller secluded wetland.

Tenison said she was touched to see the ducklings reunited with their mother and appreciated all who played a role in making it a reality.

“I’m grateful for the people that actually went out and saved the baby ducks. The Mount Greenwood community is awesome,” Tenison said.