WATCH: Hero catches ducklings falling from wall at Busch Gardens
TAMPA (FOX 13) - Channing Deren's family was hoping for a wild ride during their Dad's Day trip to Busch Gardens, but they never expected for the hands-on experience that literally fell into their lap.
"We started walking up to the kids' ride and something fell on my shoulder and I had no idea what it was. So we looked down and it was a baby duck!" Deren said Monday.
They looked up at the ride's stone barricade, where they saw a nest and more fluffy friends about to fall.
"There were like 20 duck faces just looking down at us!" she said.
With that, the sky starting dropping down ducklings. Channing and her 6-year old daughter Audrey watched as dad, Eric came to the rescue.
"He'd catch it in one hand, and then he'll catch another one. I was just watching him thinking, 'How are you doing that?!'" Deren laughed.
VIDEO: Watch the raw footage
Thankfully, they found the mama duck nearby and reunited her with the daring ducklings. Channing says one baby was wobbling and was taken away by Busch Gardens staffers for treatment. But in the end, her baby couldn't have been prouder of her knight-in-shining-armor this Father's Day.
"She was just the whole rest of the day, 'My dad's a hero!' She was so excited!" Deren added.
A spokeswoman for Busch Gardens says the ducklings are not part of the park's animal collection so she's not sure where they ended up.