(Photo submitted) Jo Runkle parked her car on the west end of the parking lot at Eaton Corp. last Thursday. That's where a hitchhiking groundhog may have jumped on board. This little guy chewed through some electrical wiring and caused extensive damage.

As a scheduling supervisor at Eaton Corp., Jo Runkle is used to planning things out.

But how could she have anticipated what happened at the end of her shift Thursday, May 8?

"When I started the car, I had several warning lights on my dash," she said. "There were at least three and a couple more flashing."

A light saying "woodchuck" would have been the most help. Somewhere under the hood, by the fan belts and windshield washing fluid, near the battery and alternator, a local groundhog found a place to relax.

Even experts in the field can't explain it. Woodchucks, or groundhogs if you prefer, tend to like wide open, grassy areas.

"I can't say what it would have been doing there," said Don Cunningham, an environmental specialist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

North American marmots aren't on Runkle's troubleshooting list, so she took her recently-purchased car back to the dealership. She even left the engine running, so a mechanic could see the warning lights on her dashboard.

(Photo submitted) Animal control is part of the Spencer Police Department's service to the community, but a stubborn woodchuck, lodged inside a car, threw officers a curve ball.

The mechanics were gone so "bring it back on Monday," they told her. "I'm sure it will be fine."

She drove her car home, parked in the garage, and told her son what happened.

"He went out to the garage to check it, because I thought it was funny that all of these lights would go on," Runkle said.

"He opened the hood up and yelled at me: 'Get the camera.' And there it was. It must have gotten in out here at Eatons."

This should be the part of the story where the short-legged woodland creature darts out over the front bumper and scurries away. As the Bill Murray character, Phil Connors, found out in the movie about Feb. 2, getting rid of a groundhog isn't always so easy.

"It wasn't going to leave at all -- and we called the police," Runkle said.

That officer called another officer because, he told Runkle, "no one is going to believe me."

Runkle couldn't believe it either.

"Even when I came home and put it in the garage, it still stayed in there. Then my son backed it out and opened up the hood. There was quite a commotion going on for quite some time, with the policemen coming -- and my other son came. Then the neighbors stopped over."

Still, "it wouldn't move," Runkle said. "It wouldn't leave at all. My son put a fire extinguisher underneath it to try to smoke it out and it still didn't leave."

The next call went out to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Sure enough, they had the answer: Park the car outside with the hood up and a bright light shining on the critter. By nightfall, the animal would no longer enjoy his accommodations.

"The next day he was gone," Runkle said. "But I have a lot of damage to my car."

This woodchuck could chuck electrical wiring and insulation, apparently. The $500 deductible is going to sting, but Runkle said her policy will cover stowaway groundhogs -- an adjuster took a look at Runkle's car Tuesday.

They did tell her, however, they were glad she brought in photo evidence.

The images could be used for a "wanted" poster.

"It could be at the neighbor's," Runkle said.

"It could be in another vehicle -- making a nest."