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 "It's really a miracle," Dive Time Recovery owner Jon Zuccala, who
pulled the submerged boat from a sandbar north of Lake Havasu City,
told Reuters by telephone on Wednesday. "I would have named her
'Eight' because after all this, I'm sure she has used up one of her
nine lives."
Zuccala said he was called to the scene by authorities on Saturday
afternoon to hoist the boat to the shore from the lake's bottom. The
boat was then towed to his shop where a mechanic went to work the
next morning to flush out the engine.
"The cat just darted out when he opened up the hatch," Zuccala said.
"She was wet, scared, thirsty, but she was alive."
Lucky's quick escape proved problematic as the 10-pound (5.5 kg)
plus cat became wedged into some upholstery on the boat before again
being set free.
Just how the cat became trapped inside a storage compartment at the
boat's bow has not been determined. Zuccala said the boat's owner is
from Orange County, California, and he reported that he does not own
a cat.
Zuccala said no one heard a sound, or even a meow, until the cat
sprang to freedom and was taken to the Western Arizona Humane
Society.
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Originally named River by a volunteer, the cat was given the more
fitting name of Lucky by the society's executive director, Patty
Gillmore.
Gillmore said the feline was doing well, but was a bit anti-social
with the other animals. If she is not claimed by her owner by
Thursday morning, a local woman with ties to the shelter wants to
adopt her, Gillmore said.
(Editing by Curtis Skinner and Sandra Maler)
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