Recently, on a fall evening in Connecticut, a grandmother was at her son’s house babysitting her grandchildren when she noticed a feathered figure on the roof of the home.
The wayward bird was a red-tailed hawk, who’d been chasing a squirrel when he mistakenly got trapped in the family’s solar panels. Now, the beautiful bird was injured, dehydrated and unable to move.
In need of an expert, the grandmother contacted A Place Called Hope (APCH), a local animal rescue group, for help. Daylight was already waning. Frustratingly, the sun had set by the time an APCH team member arrived, making it difficult to commence a rescue.
The APCH rescuer took photos of the bird and sent them to the rescue’s climbing team for review. Then everyone waited, hoping that the hawk could hold out a bit longer.
“It was a long night of worry,” a representative from APCH told The Dodo. “We were all very anxious for daylight.”
Early the next day, rescuers Peter Lombardo and Alex Brune arrived. Using the homeowner’s ladder, Brune climbed to the lower section of the roof. Then, outfitted with safety gear, he free-climbed to the top, covered the hawk to lessen his stress, pulled the bird out from under the panels, moved him to a carrier, and lowered him down to Lombardo waiting on the ground.
Team members rushed the bird to their rescue center, where APCH director Christine Cummings x-rayed the hawk and treated his leg injuries. Cummings was pleased to find the bird’s wounds weren’t as bad as she’d anticipated. The grateful hawk gobbled his food and healed quickly. Soon enough, he was ready to be released back into the wild.
Everyone at APCH is thrilled that the rescue went so well, thanks to the expertise of their crew.
“APCH is so fortunate to be made up of dedicated individuals who care deeply for our wildlife,” APCH wrote. “Thank you, team, once again, for another brave rescue.”

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