Trapped Kittens Freed After Long Stay in Flatcar

Two newborn kittens’ cries of distress led to their rescue Friday after days of diligence by Fullerton brothers determined not to let bureaucracy triumph over life.

“It’s a great ending for a nice weekend that’s coming up,” Dave Orzechowski, 34, said happily after a railroad engineer used a blowtorch to make an opening in a rail car large enough to free the tiny animals, whose umbilical cords were still attached.

He and his brother Peter, 40, were walking near their home on South Richman Avenue Monday when they heard mews coming from the railroad tracks. They traced the sound to a flatcar and saw that the opening to the kittens’ hiding place was far too small for them to reach through.

The brothers called Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, which owns the tracks, and learned that the flatcar was owned by another company and could not be cut open without permission.

The car was supposed to have left Wednesday night, spokeswoman Lena Kent said, but was delayed because of the kittens.

The Orzechowskis kept watch, spraying water toward the kittens twice a day to keep them cool. “They were hurting,” Peter Orzechowski said. “I don’t like to see animals hurt.”

As neighborhood interest grew, people speculated how the kittens wound up in such a fix. One theory was that their mother delivered them, was frightened when the train began to move and jumped clear.

When rescue finally came--at an estimated cost of $10,000 to remove a piece of the steel from the flatcar--the kittens were lifted out to a chorus of “oohs” and “ahhs” from about 50 spectators.

They will be at an animal shelter for about eight weeks, said Lt. Brian Frick, a supervising animal-control officer, and then available for adoption. Several railroad employees have already expressed interest, he said.