A frightening sight in a West Valley City neighborhood prompted a response from multiple agencies who worked Thursday night to relocate a surprising visitor.
Damon, a resident in the area, went outside in the area of 4000 South 5200 West to make a phone call when he saw something lurking in a tree that didn’t quite look right.
“I kept staring at it while I was talking and saw the tail move, I’m like, that’s a freaking mountain lion,” he said in a video posted by the West Valley City Fire Department.
Photos of the cat show it just relaxing in the tree, swinging its tail and taking in the sights from above the residential neighborhood.
Meanwhile, Damon took action, getting his dad and brother to give their opinion on whether a cougar was indeed in the tree.
“They both said the same thing,” Damon explained. “So that’s when we started making calls.”
Having confirmed the large cat’s presence, Damon called the non-emergency line for the city. Police officers as well as the Division of Wildlife Resources headed to the neighborhood to get the mountain lion out of the tree and away from the neighborhood.