Kitten hitches 15-mile ride, gets recruited by search and rescue team

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The Multnomah County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue team has found its newest recruit: a small kitten who hitched a 15-mile car ride in the Columbia River Gorge.

Volunteers Lindsey Lohr and Greg Wood had to coax the fuzzy black creature out of a small space after hearing a faint meow from inside a truck.

"I've been volunteering with the county for 20 years and this is the first time this has happened," Wood said.

That same vehicle had been flagged for an inspection for what was thought to be a rodent stow-away after a K-9 drew attention to it back at the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office parking lot. However, before the inspection took place, the truck was dispatched to a call to the Vista house in the Gorge, more than a dozen miles away.

Thus the kitten that was eventually discovered must've made the wild, 15-mile ride in the vehicle going highway speeds. She was found inside the wheel well when volunteers disassembled the truck.

"It wasn't until we climbed up into the engine basically with the flashlight that we could even tell that she was down here," Lohr said.

"We see just this tiny head pop up — it was like, 'meow.' And it was like, there you are," Wood said.

The kitten took on the namesake of the place where it was discovered: Vista.

Vista now has a brand new home with one of the deputies and a clean bill of health after fighting off fleas and a cold. Not to mention, she's also the Search and Rescue team's mascot.

It's unclear how Vista ended up in the wheel well. However, it's a good reminder to inspect your car as temperatures drop since you never know when you'll find a creature looking for warmth.