Bodycam footage recorded on September 27, 2024, at 14:36:52 shows a rescuer kneeling in muddy floodwater inside a severely flooded laundromat, where a tiny brown, black and white tabby kitten sits stranded on top of a stainless-steel washing machine, laundry baskets and clothing drifting in the brown water and heavy rain streaming down the wide storefront windows.

The video, filmed entirely from the rescuer’s chest-mounted bodycam, opens on the kitten where it crouches near the front edge of the machine. Its fur is soaked and spiky, its white muzzle and white front paws stand out against the wet tabby stripes, and its large round eyes stay fixed on the rescuer. The rescuer, wearing a teal-blue waterproof flood-response jacket with black wrist straps, black waterproof gloves, black waterproof pants and rescue gear with metal carabiners around the waist, rests his forearms on the front edge of the machine and slides both hands slowly across the wet metal, palms open, staying low.

He does not grab for the kitten. As it blinks, lowers its ears and gives a soft meow, he simply keeps his hands still and lets it settle. Only then does one gloved hand slide gently beneath its chest and the other under its hindquarters, drawing the little animal slowly toward him across the slick steel, its small white paws skimming the surface while droplets fall from its drenched fur.

In the closing seconds the kitten is gathered into both cupped hands resting on the front edge of the washing machine, cradled low and secure, never raised high and never carried away from the spot. It lifts its face, blinks slowly and lets out one quiet meow, while the rows of front-loading machines along the right wall, the floating baskets and the rain-streaked windows remain in frame around them — soaked, frightened and, at last, held safe above the floodwater.

Rescue workers remind the public never to wade into a flooded business or home themselves to reach a stranded animal: floodwater inside buildings can hide electrical hazards, sharp debris and sudden drops, and appliances and shelving can shift without warning. Calling local emergency or animal rescue services — and keeping a safe distance until they arrive — gives animals like this little tabby kitten the best chance of a calm, careful rescue like the one captured here.