Train-delaying cat rescued from New York subway station

NEW YORK, Feb. 23 (UPI) -- An "unauthorized" cat that sparked delays at a New York City subway station during an unsuccessful rescue attempt was caught in a trap the next day, police said.

The No. 6 train was delayed for about an hour Sunday at the station at 138th St. and 3rd Ave. in the Bronx while police and animal rescuers attempted to coax a cat spotted inside a subway grate.

The cause of the delays was identified as an "unauthorized animal" by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's official NYCT Subway Twitter account.

The rescuers were unable to catch the frightened cat, which fled deeper into the subterranean tunnel.

The cat was captured Monday night in a trap baited with tuna.

Chief Joseph Fox of the New York Police Department's Transit Bureau tweeted early Tuesday the cat was doing well after being rescued from the subway station.

The feline, which had apparently been trapped in the station for up to two weeks and subsisted on food thrown down the grate by witnesses, was turned over to the Magnificat Cat Rescue and Rehoming group.

The rescue group dubbed the feline "Subway Dunford."

"He's in shockingly good shape, but really dirty," Magnificat volunteer John Sibley told the New York Daily News. "He's about the dirtiest cat I've ever seen."