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Cat free

Employee rescues trapped kitty

NJ cat
Bennie, the cat rescued at the South Jersey Processing and Distribution Center, makes himself at home in a mail tub.

Joe Romano is used to taking postal vehicles apart — but never to extract an animal.

The Bellmawr, NJ, lead automotive technician was recently called to the South Jersey Processing and Distribution Center to help free a kitten trapped inside a vehicle’s engine.

“It had traveled to the car’s rear suspension,” said Romano. “I had to get a jack to lift the car and remove the panels.”

After being freed, the frightened kitten ran toward a nearby lot. Romano, a cat owner himself, was concerned about the animal’s welfare and went after it.

“I drove around to the other side of the lot, but then it ran back through the fence and got into the car again,” said Romano, who then performed a second rescue.

Donna Stires, a Bellmawr labor relations secretary, praised Romano and the other employees who helped save the kitten, which her family has since adopted and named “Bennie.”

“Most people would say it’s only a cat and to let it go,” she said. “It was nice to see that someone cared enough to give of their time.”

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