A daredevil raccoon which climbed a 25-storey tower in Minnesota, USA had the entire internet on tenterhooks for almost 20 hours as people prayed desperately for its safety.
The animal’s journey up the outside wall of the office building of UBS Tower, one of the tallest buildings in St Paul city, was streamed across the world on social media, becoming an instant hit on twitter under the hashtag #MPRraccoon. Minnesota Public Radio reporter Tim Nelson spotted the animal from his office opposite the building and began tweeting the raccoon’s progress as it climbed steadily up the UBS tower.
A live video was posted by CBS affiliate WCCO-TV on Facebook as the animal scaled the wall. People inside the UBS office also began taking videos and pictures as it appeared at the windows of their floor. Very soon, the internet was filled with people concerned about its safety.
To everyone’s relief, the raccoon soon made it to the roof of the tower, where live traps had been set for it by now by the city’s department of safety inspections. It was caught in one of the traps and after a meal of soft cat food, it was released into the wild with the help of the Minnesota Wildlife Management Services, as the entire internet cheered on.
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