F E AT U R E S TO R Y
A RAPTOR RESCUE TO REMEMBER
A bald eagle survives an Alabama interstate calamity thanks to the foresight of two caring Birmingham women. By Jeana Durst What happens when you see an injured bald eagle on the side of an Alabama interstate? If you are Cindy Wentworth and Debbie Wilson, it turns into a miraculous rescue. You may even recognize the story— their rescue mission was shared over 2,200 times on Facebook. What’s most striking, however, is the calm and compassion these two ladies exhibited. And what we as caretakers of all animals—not just dogs and cats—can learn from their experience. On January 26, 2020, Wentworth and Wilson were on their way to Desoto State Park for a day hike, chatting in the car. From the northbound lane of I-20 somewhere between Gadsden and Fort Payne, Wentworth spotted an unusual sight: “I see something in the middle of the road eating roadkill. My first thought was, ‘oh my there’s a bird in the road,’ and then I realized he had a white head,” Wentworth says. So they turned the car around to investigate, but once they had made it to the southbound lane, the bird was gone, so they resumed their route. When they did, they spotted the bald eagle on the side of the road across the interstate, obviously injured and struggling with a hurt wing. So they whipped the car around again back to the southbound lanes. “We parked 20 feet from it—cautious because it was a raptor and we wondered how it would respond,” Wentworth says. What they found was a fully mature bald eagle with a pretty serious injury, likely a brush with a car while he was feeding on roadkill. As the ladies tried to decide what to do, they maintained a safe distance from the eagle, who didn’t try to move. After exploring some options, they decided to call
PHOTOS COURTESY OF CINDY WENTWORTH
911. The dispatcher there connected them with Alabama Wildlife Management, who sent a ranger in their direction, but he was an hour and a half away. During their wait, many cars passed. Only one stopped—a couple looking for a selfie with a bald eagle made a quick stop and agitated the bird, in the process. In fact, at that point, the eagle hopped from the side of the interstate into the median. “At that point, we realized it could still move but just hop,” Wentworth says. As the women moved to be near the bird, a local police officer stopped to help ensure safety. He reported that they had just recently rescued another eagle along this stretch of I-20, which is, unfortunately, known for its ample
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