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Hillsborough Deputies Scoop Puppy to Safety

Deputy Tara Quezada | Deputy Zachary Shute | Hillsborough County Sheriff

They used a net to rescue “Poncho” from a drowning in a storm drain.

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY – Two Hillsborough sheriff’s deputies rescued a puppy that was struggling to stay afloat after it fell into a water-filled storm drain.

Deputy Tara Quezada was on patrol in eastern Hillsborough County when she was flagged down by residents who told her a small puppy had fallen into a storm drain filled with water and was struggling to stay afloat.

Quezada called her zone partner, Deputy Zachary Shute, for help. Shute arrived with some tools and they were able to remove the cover from the storm drain. The puppy, which they named “Poncho,” was deep in the storm drain and out of reach even when the deputies used a net that a bystander gave them.

Taking a minute to regroup and formulate a new plan, Shute grabbed hold of Quezada’s duty belt, lowered her head first into the storm drain so she could use the net to rescue Poncho.

Unable to locate Poncho’s owner, the deputies took her to the Hillsborough County Pet Resource Center.

Photo shows Hillsborough sheriff’s Deputy Deputy Tara Quezada, left, and Deputy Zachary Shute with “Poncho,” a 3-month-old puppy they saved from a storm drain. Courtesy of the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.

 Hillsborough Sheriff | Deputies | Puppy | Deputies Save Puppy | Pets | Animals | Tampabay News

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