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The rescue team went about their task with utmost care and waited for the kitten to come out on her own. Picture for illustrative purposes only. Image Credit: Supplied

Sharjah: In two separate incidents in Sharjah, two kittens stuck inside car hoods were rescued by a team of Sharjah Civil Defence officials after car owners dialed for help.

Ahmad Ezat, 21, a Sharjah resident, told Gulf News that on December 2 around midnight, he was stuck at a traffic signal on King Abdul Azizi Road when he saw a kitten pass by quickly and disappear under his vehicle. Thereafter, he heard cries of a cat. He tried to get the kitten out, but his attempts failed. Ezat said his first thought was to save the life of the kitten. “So I called 999, then 997 and explained the problem. They told me to move the car slowly on to the side of the road in order to avoid causing a traffic jam. I provided the emergency services my location. Within minutes the rescue team arrived, opened the hood and the kitten was spotted inside. The rescue team had quite a task on their hands as they had to pull the kitten out without injuring her or damaging the car,” Ezat said.

The rescue team went about their task with utmost care and waited for the kitten to come out on her own. Finally, around 1am, they were able to get the little feline creature out of the hood, Ezat added.

For Ezat, the entire experience was very heartening. He expressed his gratitude towards Sharjah Civil Defence and Sharjah Police for their professionalism, compassion and care. “It was indeed admirable how seriously they took my request and acted on it,” he added.

Sharjah Civil Defence officials told Gulf News that they had received two separate calls in the Operations Room regarding cats stuck inside cars and both the kittens were rescued.

In the second incident, Sharjah Civil Defence received a call around midnight about a cat stuck inside a car hood at the lower parking lot in Sharjah City Center. Immediately, a team was dispatched from the Semnan Center to attend the call for help. The car owner was informed to take the car out to the outer parking lot and the cat was rescued and handed over to its owner after the Civil Defence team intervened.

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Civil Defence officials said the problem of cats getting stuck inside car hoods was more pronounced during the winter months as these creatures love to snuggle up to the warmth inside vehicle hoods and wheel wells. So motorists are advised to walk around their vehicles, check the wheel wells, under the hood and even blow the horn to make sure no creature is stuck inside, before driving off.