Raccoon reaches top of Minnesota skyscraper, touches hearts

[June 13, 2018]  By Brendan O'Brien

(Reuters) - A raccoon reached the top of a 25-story St. Paul, Minnesota, skyscraper early on Wednesday after becoming a star on the web, where it captured the hearts of followers across the United States and around the globe.

At a little before 3 a.m. local time, the animal made it to the roof of the UBS Plaza building after it took a hours-long break on a 17th floor window sill, according to live feed posted by local media.

"I am so proud of this little rascal - such a fricking champ!!!!," said Dana Frazer as she watched a live feed of the raccoon's climb on Periscope, a live streaming site.

The raccoon's saga began about two days ago when the brown, masked critter was spotted stranded on a ledge of the office tower.

On Tuesday, the raccoon slowly scaled the UBS building, reaching the 23rd floor as its legend grew on social media with every floor it climbed.

"I made a big mistake," said an afternoon post on a Twitter account created for the raccoon before it climbed down a few floors later in the day.

As it ascended, well-wishers gathered on the sidewalk below to take photos and root for its safety.

"I would be legitimately devastated if it fell," a woman told Minnesota Public Radio as she watched the raccoon's climb.

On Twitter, office workers posted photos and videos of the raccoon resting on sills and climbing up the building's concrete pillars.

The hashtag #mprraccoon was trending on Wednesday where fans anxiously watched developments of the raccoon's stunt.

"Way to go little raccoon. The world was watching & rooting for you!," said a Twitter user that goes by The Lockwood Echo in the United Kingdom.

The windows on the 305-foot skyscraper do not open and window washers could not rescue the animal. Animal-control officials said the raccoon would be trapped and helped when it reached the roof, reported the Washington Post.

"If they rescue it would be a good news story and we all kind of need that," a man told Minnesota Public Radio.

(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee)

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