Groundhog dies after escaping NYC mayor’s grip

In this Feb. 2, 2014 image taken from video, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, left, winces as Staten Island Chuck breaks free and drops to the stage during the 2014 Groundhog Day ceremony at the Staten Island Zoo, in New York. The groundhog died a week after the fall. But the rodent, which had just predicted six more weeks of winter before tumbling several feet from the mayor's hands, was not the zoo's famed Staten Island Chuck, but rather a stand-in named Charlotte. (AP Photo/Staten Island Advance, Anthony DePrimo) In this Feb. 2, 2014 image taken from video, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, left, winces as Staten Island Chuck breaks free and drops to the stage during the 2014 Groundhog Day ceremony at the Staten Island Zoo, in New York. The groundhog died a week after the fall. But the rodent, which had just predicted six more weeks of winter before tumbling several feet from the mayor's hands, was not the zoo's famed Staten Island Chuck, but rather a stand-in named Charlotte. (AP Photo/Staten Island Advance, Anthony DePrimo)

By Associated Press September 25, 2014 3 min read

NEW YORK (AP) – Her shadow was one of the last things she saw.

The groundhog that escaped Mayor Bill de Blasio’s grasp during this year’s Staten Island Zoo Groundhog Day ceremony died a week after the fall.

But the rodent, which had just predicted six more weeks of winter before tumbling several feet from the mayor’s hands, was not the zoo’s famed Staten Island Chuck, but rather a stand-in named Charlotte.

Moreover, the zoo did not notify the mayor’s office of the death, which was first reported by The New York Post. The story electrified social media on Thursday, prompting a flood of Twitter jokes about a #Groundhoghazi cover-up and de Blasio’s possible impeachment.

“We were unaware that Staten Island Chuck had passed but are sorry to hear of the loss,” mayoral spokesman Phil Walzak said.