A Fairbanks man is in Harborview Medical Center in Seattle with serious injuries suffered in a fall after he rescued a cat from a tree.

Seventy-three-year-old Joe Fletcher had a torn aorta, broken ribs and brain swelling after falling 25 Saturday from a tree at a home.

He had just retrieved a cat named Sam, who was chased up the tree by a dog and refused to come down. Pet owner Jenny Ray called
Fletcher who has operated the J and E Trees business for 30 years.

Employee Chris Held told The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner Fletcher
rescued the cat as a favor.

The Fairbanks Fire Department has a policy against animal rescues. Assistant Chief Ernie Misewicz says most animal situations resolve themselves.