A quirky fundraiser in Syracuse, New York, took an unexpected turn after a landlord reportedly called police on a crowd gathered to watch a toy penguin thaw out of a block of ice. The unusual event, organized to benefit a local SPCA, quickly went viral after attendees found an unconventional way to finish the “Bird Thawing Event.”
Whether the local residents knew exactly what the activity’s name implied, they wanted a part in it. Allegedly, “way more people showed up than expected,” according to Reddit user Duststorm29. As the crowd grew, a nearby landlord reportedly contacted police, bringing the event to an early end.
Because the New York Police Shut Down the Event Early, the Bird Couldn’t Be Properly Thawed
With the event ending early, attendees abandoned the original plan of waiting for the ice to melt and instead smashed the frozen block against the pavement to free the toy penguin. “That’s not thawing. Like not at all. Lol. Glad it’s free!” remarked a Redditor, reacting to Duststorm29’s video of the ‘post-cop-call thawing.’ “May the bird find new melting grounds,” wrote another.
Plenty of others were happy to see that the bird was freed at the very least, though the fun and good vibes were cut short. Another video shared on Reddit showed the landlord confronting attendees after police arrived. “That man never thawed a bird in his life,” sighed a commenter. “Heaven forbid the business that rents from him do a good job at marketing. What a jerk,” said a second.
What began as a lighthearted fundraiser organized by a group of friends ended much earlier than planned, but the unusual event found a much larger audience online. While opinions differed over whether police should have been called, many commenters felt the crowd was simply trying to support a good cause and have fun. As one person put it, “The vibes really were just fine. Sucks that Karen’s gonna Karen.”
