Duck, Duck, Rescue!
July 15, 2026
It wasn’t a typical Tuesday morning for The City of Red Deer’s Wastewater crew. After a call came in about two ducklings trapped in stormwater drains behind Argent Close, the team traded routine maintenance for a feathered rescue mission.
It wasn’t a typical Tuesday morning for The City of Red Deer’s Wastewater crew. After a call came in about two ducklings trapped in stormwater drains behind Argent Close, the team traded routine maintenance for a feathered rescue mission.
Concerned resident Mike Guest made the call after two ducklings wandered away from a mother duck and her brood of eight. The ducklings split in opposite directions, headed down nearby alleys and tumbled into separate storm drains while the rest of the family waddled on.
Wastewater crew members Mark Walper, Adam Marcus and Mackenzie Richards were first on scene. They quickly spotted the first duckling in a catch basin and lowered a plastic bucket by rope, lifting the small visitor safely out of the drain.
The second duckling proved harder to find. Although Guest saw it enter a nearby storm drain, it quickly moved out of sight. A second crew—Twain Korenchuk and Colin Amendt—arrived with the camera van unit to scope the pipe. The tiny traveller was located, flushed to a safe confined space and rescued.
From there, both ducklings were reunited and surrendered to Judy Boyd from Medicine River Wildlife Centre for reunification or adoption to another flock.
It was a small rescue with a big reminder: City crews are often working behind the scenes to keep Red Deer safe, clean and connected—even when the job comes with feathers.
The City of Red Deer uses stormwater ponds and other dry and wet infrastructure to reduce flooding and help keep our water clean. This system captures rain and snowmelt as it flows over land into storm drains, streets and natural areas. It is an essential part of Red Deer’s water ecosystem—and, on this Tuesday, it briefly became part of a duckling rescue route too.
Clearly, the duckling missed the memo: only rain belongs in the storm drain!