A Florida man is being hailed as a hero after braving Hurricane Ian flood waters to save a stranded cat.
Mike Ross, a 29-year-old from Bonita Springs in southwest Florida, spotted the cat from a window.
The cat was standing on top of an air conditioning unit as the flood waters rushed beneath it. The poor orange tabby was visibly terrified.
Stranded in a hurricane
Ross, a consultant at a software company, rushed out to help the kitty. He had already evacuated his own home, which was 10 ft. underwater.
He fled to his parent’s house to take shelter since their house was fortified to withstand hurricanes.
Even though he had finally fled to safety, he wasn’t about to leave this kitten to fend for itself in the Category 4 storm.
My boyfriend saving a cat from flood waters near Bonita Beach. #HurricaneIan #Naples #Bonita #FortMyers pic.twitter.com/BlBC9P1rdy
— Megan Cruz Scavo (@MeganScavo) September 28, 2022
“The storm surge had rushed up quite a bit at that point,” Ross told The Washington Post.
Still, Ross walked out into knee-deep raging waters and fought against the current to get to the cat. The cat didn’t hesitate to let Ross scoop him up.
The cat actually pressed up close against Ross and look relieved to have been rescued. Ross’s mom, Marybeth Ross, caught the rescue on camera.
“Look at Michael saving the kitty. Awww,” you can hear her say off camera in the video.
Ross admitted that he was heartbroken to think about how many pets weren’t going to survive the storm. Still, he was grateful to have been able to save at least one.
New shelter
Not only did Ross save the cat, but he gave it a place to recover and relax. The cat is currently staying with Ross and his family in their house.
They hope to be able to track down the cat’s owners. If they can’t, they say they are fully prepared to give this feline a forever home. In the meantime, Ross has a new hurricane buddy to help ride out the storm with. The cat is reportedly in good health.
Ross’s girlfriend, Megan Cruz Scavo, posted the video of the rescue on Twitter where it’s been viewed more than 2.4 million times and retweeted 15,000 times. There were tons of comments thanking and praising Ross for his efforts to save the cat.
There were also more than a few comments applauding Scavo’s choice in men and advising her to marry him. It seems as though there are going to be a lot of women who have a crush on Ross after his chivarlrous act.