9 ducklings rescued from storm drain on Long Island

WILLOW CREEK, New York (WABC) -- Nine ducklings were rescued from a storm drain on Long Island Tuesday thanks to the efforts of a local animal protection group official and his daughter-in-law.

Around 11 a.m., SPCA Chief Roy Gross and daughter-in-law Cara Gross responded to a call from a management company in the Hamlet at Willow Creek that several ducklings had toppled into a storm drain and needed help.

When they arrived, they found a mallard duck mother frantically running back and forth, and cries could be heard in pipes beneath the street.

Roy asked maintenance workers to send water down one end of the street drain to flush the ducklings toward Cara, who was the only rescuer small enough to fit into the drain.

Eight of the ducklings were returned to the lake with the mother, while one was transported to Selden Animal Hospital for treatment.