When ducklings fall into a storm drain, police come to the rescue (again)
Every day, police officers respond to reports of all sorts of events and nonevents, most of which never make the news. Here is a sampling of lesserknown — but no less noteworthy — incidents from police log books (a.k.a. blotters) in our communities.
ANOTHER DUCKLING RESCUE
Remember the ducklings that were rescued by Franklin
police on May 29? A similar situation unfolded in the city of
Lynn not too long ago, when three police officers responded to a call for a duck in distress and discovered seven ducklings had fallen into a storm drain. On June 13, the Lynn Police Department posted video footage of their rescue operation on Twitter. The police officers “worked quickly to retrieve the ducklings and reunite them with their mother,” the tweet said. “Job well done.”
DRIVE-BY GEL GUN SHOOTING
At approximately 5:52 p.m. on May 4, Salem police were dispatched after receiving a 911 call about a person shooting what appeared to be a BB gun out of a vehicle. The caller told police that while walking home from Salem State University, they noticed several people riding in a small gray sedan shooting what appeared to be a BB gun out of the back seat window at pedestrians walking along Canal Street. The witness provided police with a description of the vehicle and the direction it was traveling. A short time later, officers spotted a vehicle fitting that description traveling on Washington Street toward Bridge Street. Police pulled it over and noted that the rear passenger side window was rolled down. They also saw what appeared to be the barrel of a rifle near the feet of the passenger in the back seat. Police determined it was an Orbeez gun, a plastic toy gun that shoots gel pellets.
The driver and front passenger of the vehicle told police they had picked up a man named Rocket Power (who was sitting in the back seat) and they had taken turns shooting each other before Power began shooting the Orbeez gun outside the car window as they drove through Salem.
Rocket Power, 20, of Palm County, Fla., was subsequently arrested and charged with assault with a dangerous weapon. Salem police said this was the second incident involving an Orbeez gun in less than a month. “Both incidents caused fear and resulted in a significant police response,” police said in a statement. “Improper use of these types of ‘toys’ is a serious offense that can result in serious injury to innocent bystanders and arrest of the offender.”
BABY SAVED FROM CHOKING
On May 18, Somerville police Officer Thomas Lambert was working a construction detail when he heard a call on the radio about a baby who was choking. He ran to where the scene was unfolding and when he arrived he found the baby was blue and not breathing, police wrote on Facebook. Lambert turned the baby over and started back thrusts until the child spit up what appeared to be clumps of formula. He continued rubbing his back and (thankfully) the baby began breathing again.
NOT SO NEIGHBORLY
At 8:59 a.m. on April 1, Cohasset police received a call from a woman who accused her former neighbor on Beechwood Street of illegal dumping. The caller told police she had just caught the neighbor dumping items from their home into their dumpster, and this was not the first time they had trespassed. She said it happened earlier that morning, and her husband pulled the stuff out of the dumpster and put it back on the neighbor’s property. The caller went on to explain that they had moved out of the residence the day before and it was now occupied by the new owners. She asked that an officer be dispatched to speak to the neighbor. An officer was sent to the scene and took a report.