On Thursday evening, I heard a faint meow somewhere near my home. At first, I could not see anything, but by Friday, I finally spotted the source of the sound: a cat stuck high up in a tree perched on the edge of a cliff. On the other side lay the main road. I tried reaching the cat with my own ladder, but it was far too risky — the ground was unstable, and sunset was approaching. Then came rain showers, and the situation became even more delicate.
By Saturday morning, I knew I needed help.
Because many people often say that the fire station in Dominica “doesn’t respond to cat rescues,” my first thought was to contact the St. Nicholas Animal Rescue. Unfortunately, they are based in the north and don’t have the resources or a vehicle to serve the entire island. I live in the south, so help from them was not possible.
My son decided to call the fire station. They said they would come, but two hours passed with no sign of them. I called again, uncertain of what to expect.
To my surprise, about thirty minutes later, a fire truck and a small bus/ambulance service appeared from the Dominica Fire and Ambulance Service Station, Roseau, and what a sight itwas. Around six men and two women stepped out, all fire officers, all in good spirits, smiling as they walked in the direction of the tree. Any embarrassment I felt at having called them for what others might consider “just a cat” quickly faded when I saw how seriously they approached the
situation.
They carried their equipment by hand from the truck to the cliff — gloves, safety gear, and even a long tube that I can only describe as something between a rescue pole and a “tunnel” (perhaps meant to guide the cat down, circus-style!). Their attitude was professional, calm, and clearly experienced.
But the cat, terrified by the sudden attention, found its fear turning into courage. As the officers positioned themselves, the little creature began jumping from branch to branch, slowly making its way down. The fire officers cheered it on like a tiny athlete:
“Go, kitty, go!”
“You can do it!”
With every shout of encouragement, the cat descended until it finally reached the ground safely. Only then did I approach the female officer who had taken the lead. I asked if she was in command, and she said yes. I thanked Ms Andre, Sub Station Officer sincerely for treating the incident as something worthy of their time. She asked if the cat was mine; I explained it wasn’t, though it might belong to a neighbour who cares for several animals. Then she told me
something that truly stayed with me:
“When I received the report, I told the team we were going. These kinds of situations deserve the same importance as anything else we handle.”
In that moment, I felt grateful — not embarrassed. Because in the end, the size of the emergency doesn’t matter. A life is a life, and compassion is never wasted.
The cat was saved thanks to the professionalism and kindness of the Dominica Fire and Ambulance Service. They reminded me that true public service isn’t only about tackling flames and disasters — it’s also about humanity, empathy, and the willingness to help when someone, even a small someone, needs it.
And on that Saturday morning, the only thing that mattered was a cat.
Yaritza Barbosa
December 6th, 2025
Morne Bruce, Dominica.
Stupas all that none sense for a cat that was just chilling in the tree minding its own business. You call fire service and WASTE public assets for a cat that would have gotten its own self down the tree in its own time as cats do ALL the time. What a waste of resources and what a useless article.
That’s why when one calls fire and ambulance they always let or busy. Cause they have imbeciles like you wasting there time one useless calls
I salute the woman and her son who made the call to the Dominica Fire and ambulance Service Station for coming to the rescue of a cat. I also believe that the time is right when two helicopters should be in the possession of the Fire/ambulance and Police Departments. Dominica is a very mountainous island. It is difficult to get to most of Dominica by road. A helicopter will even the playing field. With the new international airport on the horizon, every thing needs to be in place in case of a hurricane, a fire, an accident or even a landslide. Dominica is improving, and is also growing. As a result, we must put all the other pieces in place to compliment that growth.
That was so humanely!
so the fire and ambulance service really put in all that effort for a cat? Meanwhile people are sick and have to wait hours for an ambulance to arrive. The gas and man hours it took to do that is tax payers money going into nonsense. This isn’t the U.S. or one of these countries where they give importance to crap like this. We can’t afford it. What if there was an emergency while this nonsense was going on with the few vehicles available somebody would have to wait possibly end up dieing because of a cat?
Thank you very much Yaritza Barbosa for your compassion towards the cat. Thank you to the Dominica Fire and Ambulance Service for their empathy.
I appreciate your Letter to the Editor and hope that your compassion will be an example to others to care for animals.
When my mother passed away I traveled from Canada to Dominica to take her 2 cats because, I could not find any one to care for them.
I am so appreciative of people like you who care for these vulnerable animals.
Blessings to you Yaritza Barboso.
Helena
Thank you for sharing this!
Quite extraordinary and interesting. 😸😸.
Beautiful!
Don’t just take peoples word for it; give it a go yourself.
Kuddos to the DFAS and this impressive crew. Dcans are sympathetic in general and we should be grateful when the essential services provide unmatched service with the little they have. Take a bow Miss Andre, we need a few more like you in the public service.
Thank you,on behalf of the fire officers.
This is the caring nature and spirit of Dominicans !!!!!
Smiling from another state !
So touching !
Proud of my peeps !