A group of good Samaritans are responsible for rescuing three baby ducks from a storm drain in downtown Niles Friday afternoon.

Niles resident Missy Smith said she was walking with her daughter, Sage, when they noticed a mother duck “screaming” near a storm drain at the intersection of Howard and Front Streets at approximately 12:30 p.m.

“She was freaking out,” Missy said.

With help from some youth at the nearby skate park, the Smiths removed the grate to discover three baby ducks in the water below, just out of reach.

Missy said her husband and her son, Chance, came to help out.

After one duck was pulled to safety, the other two swam into a pipe that ran under the road.

At some point, Berrien County Animal Control and the City of Niles Street Department arrived to help.

An animal control officer was able to net the last two ducks at around 2:30 p.m. after the street department ran water into the pipe, forcing the ducks into another storm drain access point.

Brenda Bilton, of Berrien Springs, who also helped rescue the ducks, said the mother returned less than 20 minutes after the ducks were freed.

Bilton said the babies returned to their mother and they all waddled to shelter under a nearby bush.