Driver who witnessed kitten thrown from truck into Broward traffic rescues her and takes her home

A kitten named Enola is safe and uninjured after being thrown from a moving pickup truck into traffic on Stirling Road on Sunday.

Andrea Rivera was driving directly behind the truck when she witnessed an object hurled out of the vehicle's window.

"I saw them throw something out the window. I thought it was littering, and I was annoyed by it, and then I saw it was something black," Rivera said. "I thought it was somebody's sweater, and then I saw it was in the shape of an animal. I thought it was their pet, but then I realized it's a cat."

Rivera managed to steer clear of the stunned kitten, pulled over to the side of the street, and ran back to retrieve her. She found Enola lying sideways in the road, meowing from the tumble, and immediately rushed her to a pet emergency room.

Miraculously, Enola suffered no broken bones or severe injuries from the fall or oncoming traffic. Rivera has since taken in the kitten, describing her as playful, warm, and affectionate despite the traumatic start.

"I don't know how she is fine. I still can't believe she didn't break anything," Rivera said. "She's so sweet. I couldn't have asked for a better cat."

The incident occurred just days before a new state law goes into effect Thursday aimed at curbing animal cruelty.

The upcoming legislation makes it a felony for adults to encourage minors to commit animal abuse and increases penalties for animal fighting. It also mandates psychological evaluations for juvenile offenders and expands the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) database to make background checks easier before animal adoptions.

"The database lets us know if a person has had a recordable crime that relates to animal cruelty, violence, things of that nature," said Zachary Rinkins of Broward Animal Care.

Rivera hopes Enola's survival will remind the public of the meaningful impact of pet adoption.