LAKE HAVASU CITY (AZFamily) \u2014 Three baby raccoons learned the hard way that dumpster diving isn\u2019t for amateur bandits, and it took two state troopers to bail them out of a Lake Havasu City dumpster.<\/p>\n
Two Arizona Department of Public Safety troopers were training the next generation of law enforcement at the Western Arizona Law Enforcement Academy<\/a> Thursday when they stumbled onto a case that definitely wasn\u2019t in the textbook.<\/p>\n According to DPS, the troopers were helping recruits work through mock collision investigations outside the academy when they heard something odd coming from the parking lot dumpster: scratching, whining, and unmistakable sounds of distress.<\/p>\n Inside, they found three baby raccoons, formally known as kits, that had climbed in but couldn\u2019t get back out. <\/p>\n Recruits told troopers the animals had likely been stuck since that morning\u2019s physical training session, meaning they may have spent hours trapped in the heat without food or water.<\/p>\n Thursday\u2019s high in Lake Havasu City reached 109 degrees, with an overnight low of 82, according to the National Weather Service.<\/p>\n One trooper grabbed a catchpole from his patrol car and safely lifted all three raccoons out of the dumpster.<\/p>\n \u201cYour State Troopers are committed to the safety of all our citizens of Arizona \u2014 even if they\u2019re trash pandas,\u201d DPS said in a statement, thanking the troopers for \u201cupholding the value of Courteous Vigilance with our furry friends.\u201d<\/p>\n See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it<\/a>.<\/p>\n