A 3-month-old puppy was rescued from a storm drain Tuesday in Riverview by two Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office deputies.

Deputy Tara Quezada said she was flagged down by residents who told her a puppy fell into the storm drain that was filled with water. Quezada called her partner to help.

Deputy Zachary Shute brought tools and the deputies removed the drain cover.

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The puppy, who they named “Poncho,” was deep inside the storm drain and out of reach, deputies said.

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That’s when Shute said he had a plan. Shute used Quezada’s duty belt to lower her head-first into the storm drain. Quezada said she used a net to scoop up Poncho.

Deputies said they were unable to find her owners, so Poncho the puppy was taken to the Hillsborough County Pet Resource Center.

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Fulton DA Fani Willis (center) with Nathan J. Wade (right), the special prosecutor she hired to manage the Trump case and had a romantic relationship with, at a news conference announcing charges against President-elect Donald Trump and others in Atlanta, Aug. 14, 2023. Georgia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, upheld an appeals court's decision to disqualify Willis from the election interference case against Trump and his allies. (Kenny Holston/New York Times)

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