The Tale of the Pope & the Beaver

[TjD]

Divers deployed for pope perform a rescue

NEW YORK â?? This is the tale of the pope and the beaver.

For the 4-foot-long, 40-pound critter, the timing of Pope Benedict's appearance at the United Nations was crucial: The beaver, laboring in the East River, was rescued by a New York Police Department scuba team deployed to patrol the waters near the home of the world's governing body.

Shortly after the pope left the building, divers noticed an unidentified dark object in the East River waters, said commanding officer Lt. John Harkins.

The divers found the beaver on its side, struggling to swim and "breathing heavy," Harkins said. Divers put a life preserver around the beaver, brought it back to a police boat and placed it in a plastic bucket.

Once ashore, the rodent was taken to an animal hospital.

[Dan Wardlow]

Are we sure that the beaver wasn't a terrorist in disguise?

[TjD]

If it was a terrorist it got what it deserved, the beaver died in transport to an upstate veterinary specialist.