Officer saves duck stuck in Wantagh pond

A Nassau County police officer has drawn praise for recently saving a duckling in a Wantagh park, while a video of him performing the rescue has gotten tens of thousands of views.

Jason Kogan, an officer stationed at the 7th Precinct in Seaford, responded to a 911 call for a small duck stuck under a waterfall at Mill Pond Park on Merrick Road in Wantagh on May 15 at about 5 p.m. A family there feeding the ducks noticed that the duckling got separated from its mother and trapped. They called police.

In the video, Kogan can be seen carefully traversing a ledge between levels of the pond and looking down. He eventually steps down, puts his hands into the water, pulls out the duckling and places it on the ledge, as the family can be heard cheering.

“I made sure I didn’t slip,” Kogan said at a press conference four days later outside the precinct. “It was very slippery.”

He explained that when he first arrived, he met the woman who called police and her children, and they were upset that the duck was in trouble. He initially couldn’t see the duckling, but it popped its head up, so he knew where to go.

Kogan said he didn’t think much of the rescue, and that any other officer would do the same. He did express surprise about how much attention his rescue generated.

The duckling was eventually placed back into the water and swam off to catch up to its mother and siblings.

Kogan has worked at the 7th precinct for 11 years. Detective Vincent Garcia, of the department’s Public Information office, joked that Kogan could have a long career in the department, and will likely always be remembered as the officer who saved the duck.