PHOTOS: Its the call of the wild… asking for a call for assistance

Several times each spring, urban fire departments get the call for rescue, but this is a rescue call many actually look forward to getting.

Rather than being faced with a grisly crash scene, or someone facing a dire medical condition, this rescue call greets the department members with cute little duckling chirps, and usually a concerned mama duck, quacking nearby.

Mallard ducks frequently nest and lay their eggs away from water, and hidden to avoid eggs being found and eaten by predators.

Once the babies hatch and get large enough to walk, or waddle if you will, mama duck leads them the few blocks or so to the nearest body of water.

The problem comes in when mama and crew walk alongside the curb on a city street. She is large enough to walk over storm sewer grates with ease, but the tiny babies fall through the holes and plummet down into the sewer, frantically calling for mom who is left looking on, helpless.

It’s then up to a good Samaritan walking by who hears the distressed babies and calls the local dispatch center to summon help.

That’s when your local fire department comes to save the day.

The latest rescue in the City of Fond du Lac came Wednesday, May 7, 2025 on Macy Street near Division, when an alert citizen noticed the signs of this situation. The frantic mom and the little chirps echoing up from the storm sewer. A Fond du Lac Fire/Rescue crew showed up and saved three ducklings and released them into the nearby river.