A feline crisis was narrowly avoided.
In a dramatic rescue operation, a bedraggled kitten was saved from a Massapequa sewer just moments before an impending rainstorm could have swept the tiny creature away. The kitten, affectionately named Norton, had been trapped for days.
A gripping video shows the heart-stopping moment when a determined rescuer, undeterred by the stench, pulled Norton from the murky tunnel, lifting the distraught kitten to safety.
The rescue unfolded on a rainy Saturday evening after a local resident, out for a walk with their dog, heard desperate cries emanating from a manhole on Harrison Street.
Residents believed the kitten had been navigating the sewer system for several days, yet none had managed to catch a glimpse of the elusive feline.
Responding quickly, several neighbors armed with crowbars rushed to the scene, prying open the sewer cover to allow local animal rescuer John Debacker to descend and save the day.
Debacker told The Post he knew he had to act quickly — the rain threatened to fill the already-muddy sewers quickly and potentially drown the tiny kitten.
Little Norton responded to recorded “meow” noises that Debacker blasted in the tunnels, leading the rescuer exactly to the watery spot the cat had holed itself up in.
The terrified kitten tried to evade Debacker and even tried to sprint past him and deeper into the tunnel, but the experienced rescuer grabbed the kitten.
“I got him!” Debacker can be heard saying in the video.
Norton screamed and was even biting Debacker as he was carried onto the street and placed the kitten into a carrier, which was shipped off to Second Chance Animal Rescue in Levittown and promptly given a bath.
The adventurous kitten will now have a second chance at life, and will be put up for adoption once he receives his vaccinations and is given a clean bill of health.
Debacker said the rescue has left Jim in the market for some new attire — he broke his glasses while wrangling the cat and his clothes were so filthy from the sewer that it wasn’t worth attempting to clean them.
It was well worth it, however.
“It’s the greatest feeling in the world,” John said about rescuing animals.
“I’m happy the cat is safe.”
