Quack-tastic rescue: EPPD community service officer saves ducklings from storm sewer drain

Serena Haglin, a community service officer for the Eden Prairie Police Department, found herself in a heartwarming rescue mission on Sunday afternoon when a call came in regarding a group of ducklings that fell into a storm sewer drain on Indigo Drive.

Upon arriving at the scene at about noon, Haglin didn’t have much time to assess the situation.

“Rolled up and right away you can hear the chirping from the sewer cover,” she recalled. “And the lady who called in was very helpful, but she couldn’t see the mother duck, although it was around.”

Initially, Haglin had doubts about her ability to remove the sewer grate.

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“But, it pulled right off, and you could see them sitting together,” she said. “There were seven to eight ducklings.”

Haglin lowered herself into the drain to rescue the ducklings. She strategically placed a crate nearby.

“The first time,” Haglin recalled, “I grabbed as many as I could,” noting that she remained in a kneeling position inside the drain to keep her pants clean.

Haglin’s quick thinking and resourcefulness were tested when one of the ducklings dashed into a nearby pipe. Unable to physically reach into the pipe, she devised a creative solution.

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“To lure it out, I put one of the ducks already captured near the entrance to the pipe,” she explained. “And that worked pretty well. I got him.”

With all the ducklings safely accounted for, the mother duck appeared.

“At that point, the mother duck came around about 20 feet away, and I let them loose, then they went on their way,” she said.

For Haglin, who has been serving as an Eden Prairie community service officer since September 2022, this was her first experience rescuing ducklings.

Her role as a community service officer entails addressing non-criminal incidents involving the public, such as providing assistance to individuals locked out of vehicles, directing traffic in the aftermath of accidents, and addressing various animal-related concerns.

“I’ve done a lot of animal calls: dogs running loose, cat calls, lots of raccoons and muskrats,” she noted.

Haglin aspires to become a police officer in Eden Prairie. She spent two years with the Howard Lake Police Department, initially as an intern and later as a community service officer.

The neighbor who discovered the distressed ducklings was grateful for Haglin’s intervention and brought a picture of their rescue by Haglin to the police department. The image was later posted on the city’s social media accounts.

Reflecting on the incident, Haglin acknowledged the significant role the photograph played in bringing attention to the rescue. She noted that without it, she might not have shared the story. Haglin emphasized the importance of assisting those in need, underscoring that it is an integral part of her job as a community service officer.

“I’m thankful to be able to help,” she said.