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Read the press release here.

Brooklyn Cat Cafe Operator Rescues Kitty From Side of BQE

 Anne Levin (at left) rescuing Suzy BQE from the side of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.
Anne Levin (at left) rescuing Suzy BQE from the side of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.
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Anne Levin

BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — Good thing she has nine lives.

The woman behind the Brooklyn Cat Cafe saved a freezing cat from the side of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway Tuesday, naming her "Suzy BQE" after the harrowing experience. 

Anne Levin — president of the Brooklyn Bridge Animal Welfare Coalition, which operates the cat cafe — found out about the stranded cat after someone posted a photo on an animal rescue group’s Facebook page. 

A fellow animal rescuer who knew the Cat Cafe was close by saw the post and texted Levin, asking her what she was doing.

“It wasn’t me alone, there were a lot of people involved in her rescue,” said Levin, who was already on her way to the Park Slope Veterinary Center with another rescuer to get regular checkups for a few cats.

Instead, the pair packed an extra carrier and headed towards the BQE, finding the feline under the Brooklyn Heights Promenade around 4 p.m. during Tuesday’s downpour, she said.

They pulled up slowly with their blinkers on and stopped when they spotted the cat.

“She was so wet and huddled, she looked like a piece of wood or trash just huddled up there,” Levin recounted.

She explained that the other drivers on the highway “politely” drove around them and were generally understanding of the situation.

“I think they saw I got out with a carrier and a towel and they could tell we were trying to help something there,” Levin said.

She managed to wrap the cat in a towel and get her into a carrier before heading to the veterinarian.

The cat, which the vet determined to be about one year old, had injuries to her tail and legs, Levin noted.

“It looks like she was dragged or pulled under a car,” she said. “Her tail and a little bit of her legs are scraped raw, she didn’t have any skin on there.”

As a result, the cat's tail will have to be amputated, Levin said.

Her surgery will take place in the next day or two, and then she’ll be placed in a foster home until she’s adopted, she added.

The Brooklyn Bridge Animal Welfare is currently taking donations to help pay for Suzy BQE’s surgery. To learn more about how you can donate, or if you are interested in adopting Suzy BQE, email brooklynbridgeanimals@yahoo.com