AP

Alaska firefighters help rescue a moose trapped in a home

Nov 22, 2022, 8:17 AM | Updated: 10:23 pm

In this image provided by Central Emergency Services for the Kenai Peninsula Borough, firefighters ...

In this image provided by Central Emergency Services for the Kenai Peninsula Borough, firefighters from Central Emergency Services with personnel from the Alaska Wildlife Troopers and Alaska Department of Fish and Game pose with a moose they helped rescue after it had had fallen through a window well at a home in Soldotna, Alaska, on Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022. The moose was tranquilized and removed from the house on a stretcher, revived and set loose back into the wild. (Capt. Josh Thompson/Central Emergency Services via AP)

(Capt. Josh Thompson/Central Emergency Services via AP)


              In this image provided by Central Emergency Services for the Kenai Peninsula Borough, firefighters from Central Emergency Services with personnel from the Alaska Wildlife Troopers and Alaska Department of Fish and Game help carry a moose out of a house after it had fallen through a window well at a home in Soldotna, Alaska, on Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022. The moose was tranquilized and removed from the house on a stretcher, revived and set loose back into the wild. (Capt. Josh Thompson/Central Emergency Services via AP)
            
              In this image provided by Central Emergency Services for the Kenai Peninsula Borough, a moose is trapped in a house after falling through a window well, Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022, in Soldotna, Alaska. The moose was tranquilized and removed from the house on a stretcher, revived and set free back into the wild. (Capt. Josh Thompson/Central Emergency Services via AP)
            
              In this image provided by Central Emergency Services for the Kenai Peninsula Borough, a moose is shown Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022, after it had been rescued following a fall through a window well at a home in Soldotna, Alaska. The moose was tranquilized and removed from the house on a stretcher, revived and set loose back into the wild. (Capt. Josh Thompson, Central Emergency Services via AP)
            
              In this image provided by Central Emergency Services for the Kenai Peninsula Borough, a window well is shown Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022, through which a moose fell into a home in Soldotna, Alaska. The moose was tranquilized and removed from the house on a stretcher, revived and set free back into the wild. (Capt. Josh Thompson/Central Emergency Services via AP)
            
              In this image provided by Central Emergency Services for the Kenai Peninsula Borough firefighters from Central Emergency Services with personnel from the Alaska Wildlife Troopers and Alaska Department of Fish and Game help rescue a moose that had fallen through a window well at a home in Soldotna, Alaska, on Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022. The moose was tranquilized and removed from the house on a stretcher, revived and set loose back into the wild. (Capt. Josh Thompson/Central Emergency Services via AP)
            
              In this image provided by Central Emergency Services for the Kenai Peninsula Borough, a moose is shown Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022, returning to the wild after it had been rescued following a fall through a window well into a home in Soldotna, Alaska. The moose was tranquilized and removed from the house on a stretcher, revived and set free. (Capt. Josh Thompson/Central Emergency Services via AP)
            
              In this image provided by Central Emergency Services for the Kenai Peninsula Borough, firefighters from Central Emergency Services with personnel from the Alaska Wildlife Troopers and Alaska Department of Fish and Game help carry a moose out of a house after it had fallen through a window well at a home in Soldotna, Alaska, on Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022. The moose was tranquilized and removed from the house on a stretcher, revived and set loose back into the wild. (Capt. Josh Thompson/Central Emergency Services via AP)
            
              In this image provided by Central Emergency Services for the Kenai Peninsula Borough, firefighters from Central Emergency Services with personnel from the Alaska Wildlife Troopers and Alaska Department of Fish and Game pose with a moose they helped rescue after it had had fallen through a window well at a home in Soldotna, Alaska, on Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022. The moose was tranquilized and removed from the house on a stretcher, revived and set loose back into the wild. (Capt. Josh Thompson/Central Emergency Services via AP)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Firefighters in Alaska got an unusual request for assistance last weekend from the Alaska Wildlife Troopers, but it wasn’t your mundane cat-stuck-in-a-tree situation.

“They were looking for some help getting a moose out of a basement,” said Capt. Josh Thompson with Central Emergency Services on the Kenai Peninsula.

The moose, estimated to be a 1-year-old bull, had a misstep while eating breakfast Sunday morning by a home in Soldotna, about 150 miles (240 kilometers) southwest of Anchorage.

“It looks like the moose had been trying to eat some vegetation by the window well of a basement window and fell into it, and then fell into the basement through the glass,” Thompson said.

That’s where it was stuck, one floor below ground.

A biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game was able to tranquilize the moose, but the animal wasn’t completely unconscious.

“He was still looking around and sitting there, he just wasn’t running around,” Thompson said.

Once sedated, the next problem was getting the moose — which weighed at least 500 pounds (225 kilograms) — out of the house.

Improvising a bit, responders grabbed a big transport tarp that’s typically used as a stretcher for larger human patients. Once the moose was in position, it took six men to carry him through the house and back outside.

Photos of the morning rescue show the moose unfazed, simply looking ahead between the two men maneuvering the front of the tarp down a hallway, watching where they are going.

Thompson said the moose just hung out for a while after they got outside until a reversal agent for the tranquilizer kicked in. The biologist also treated minor lacerations on the back of the moose’s legs from falling through the window, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

Once the sedative wore off, the moose apparently had his fill of human companionship and wanted to get back to the wild.

“He got up and took off,” Thompson said.

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

AP

Image: A cargo ship is stuck under the part of the structure of the Francis Scott Key Bridge after ...

Associated Press

Authorities identify 2 bodies recovered at site of Baltimore bridge collapse

A major bridge in Baltimore snapped and collapsed after a container ship rammed into it early Tuesday, and several vehicles fell into the river below.

11 hours ago

Photo: Mountaineer Jim Whittaker has died at 95....

Gene Johnson, The Associated Press

Lou Whittaker, among the most famous American mountaineers, has died at age 95

Lou Whittaker, a legendary American mountaineer who helped lead ascents of Mount Everest, K2 and Denali, has died at age 95.

12 hours ago

File photo: Former Sen. Joe Lieberman speaks in Washington on Jan. 18, 2024....

Associated Press

Former Sen. Joe Lieberman, Democrats’ VP pick in 2000, dead at 82

Former U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, who nearly won the vice presidency on the Democratic ticket with Al Gore in 2000, has died.

12 hours ago

islamic state attack...

Vanessa Gera, The Associated Press

What we know after the Islamic State group claims responsibility for Moscow massacre

The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for an attack on a suburban Moscow concert hall that killed at least 133 people.

4 days ago

Moscow shooting...

The Associated Press

Russia: 60 dead, 145 injured in concert hall raid; Islamic State group claims responsibility

Assailants burst into a concert hall in Moscow on Friday and sprayed the crowd with gunfire, killing over 60 people, injuring more than 100.

6 days ago

Photo: Britain's Kate, Duchess of Cambridge visits 282 (East Ham) Squadron, RAF Air Cadets, Cornwel...

Associated Press

Kate Middleton announces she has cancer, is undergoing chemotherapy

Kate Middleton, Princess of Wales, says she is undergoing chemotherapy to treat cancer. She has been out of view since Christmas.

6 days ago

Alaska firefighters help rescue a moose trapped in a home