On Tuesday, El Segundo Animal Control and city fire department officials tried and failed to rescue three kittens that have been stranded on the roof of a Chase Bank for nearly two months.
For weeks, volunteers from three separate animal rescue groups have been going at night to feed the kittens by tossing food up to the roof of the building, located on Sepulveda Boulevard in El Segundo.
The bank, which is leasing the building, said the property manager had been denying roof access to everyone until Tuesday, when Fire Department officials first responded to the incident, but were unable to locate the kittens.
Animal rescue volunteers believe the litter was hiding somewhere cool during the day to try and escape the afternoon heat. The volunteers were allowed on the roof Tuesday night to set traps and try to lure the kittens out, but were also unsuccessful in finding them. They will return to the roof Friday to try again.
The kittens may have been stranded when the building's property manager trimmed a tree branch that was their only exit route from the roof, volunteers said.
They have been separated from their mother, who often paces outside the bank at night. A plastic box with a blanket located near the building has led the volunteers to believe that the older cat and her litter were abandoned in the area.
"You can't just do that, you can't just leave them there to die and to fend for themselves," said Marla Marinelli, one of the volunteers. "It just doesn't happen. Animals aren't meant to be on the roof or in cars that are closed up. That's why we have laws."