Deer Rescued from Hanford Raw-Water Pond

A dramatic rescue worthy of cable television's Animal Channel took place in Hanford's 283 East Water Treatment Basin on the evening of July 11, 1999. One of the site's many non-human inhabitants - a female deer - somehow found herself trapped in the steep-walled basin. It is uncertain how the doe got in the basin, but it was a hot day and she could have been seeking a drink of water.

Utility System Operator Vinni Dragoo of DynCorp Water Utilities and Support Services first noticed the deer in the reservoir at about 8:00 p.m. and wasn't sure how long she had been swimming around, trying to get out. The basin is 13-15 feet deep, and the steep walls made it impossible for the deer to escape.

Dragoo notified Hanford Patrol, which responded immediately. Patrol personnel soon determined that they needed more help and called the Hanford Fire Department, Battelle biologists, and Ray Giddings of Waste Management Northwest, Integrated Weed and Pest Program. Giddings received a call at about 9:30 that Sunday evening and -- along with Juan Rodriguez, also of WMNW, and biologist Larry Cadwell of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory -- he headed to the 200 East Area after picking up an 8-foot boat.

According to Linda Keelin, a Hanford firefighter, "We drove up and saw this huge doe swimming laps around the reservoir and you could tell she was really wanting to get out of that water. We tried to rig up a ramp for her using a long extension ladder that we wrapped with tarps. She swam right over and tried to get out but the noise from the aluminum ladder and the fact that the her hooves slipped off the tarp on her first try made her nervous about trying again."

By 10 p.m., a small rescue army had amassed along the shore of the basin. Cadwell and Rodriguez lowered the boat into the water and paddled out to where the exhausted doe had been swimming and circling to stay as far away from the activity on shore as possible.

"She was pretty spooked, so it was hard to get close enough to rope her from shore without the aid of the boat," said Giddings. "We decided the best strategy would be to haze her toward shore with the boat, then lasso her from the sound footing of the shore, which is exactly what we did. Juan and Larry forced her to the edge, and I was able to get a rope around her, put a bag on her head to keep her calm, and, with the aid of some husky firemen, and get her to safety -- all the while keeping an eye out for our own safety."

"Although I'm sure she appreciated the effort, she didn't stick around much after we removed the cover from her head," Cadwell said. " She staggered to her feet and bounded off into the night."

The whole ordeal ended up taking about two hours, and was a concentrated team effort by employees of Integrated Weed and Pest Management, the Hanford Fire Department, the Hanford Patrol, PNNL and DynCorp Tri-Cities' 200 Area Water Facilities.

Excerpted from Hanford Reach, July 26, 1999