Earlier last month, while on a morning walk along a seaside promenade in Charleston, South Carolina, Will Deleo and his girlfriend noticed an animal struggling in the ocean a short distance from the seawall.
“At first I thought it was a cat,” Deleo told The Dodo. “But then I realized it was a raccoon, and he had no way of getting out of the water.”
Deleo and his girlfriend could easily have turned their heads and walked away, leaving the young raccoon to his fate in the inky water. But instead, they decided to stop and help.
“The first thing I thought of is, ‘I sure would hope someone would try to save me if I were in his position,'” Deleo said.
Acting quickly, Deleo found a traffic cone to reach below the seawall for the raccoon to reach — and, after a couple of failed attempts, the effort paid off.
The little raccoon’s life had been saved.
“He was so tired, but he finally held on long enough to make it to the top [of the seawall],” Deleo said.
The raccoon was understandably exhausted, though his relief to have been saved from drowning was palpable.
“He seemed very grateful, but very tired,” Deleo said.
After a few moments, the raccoon scurried away, thankful to be back on dry land. Deleo, for his part, was grateful too for having had the chance to help.
“It felt good!” he said. “I would hope someone would have done the same for me.”
