CRAWFORDVILLE, Fla., Sept. 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — As Hurricane Helene barrels toward the Florida coast, most residents are securing their homes and preparing for the dangerous storm.
When other people are evacuating or battening down the hatches, animal rescuers are racing ahead of the hurricane to get animals to safety. Everyone has heard of storm chasers. Florida Urgent Rescue (FUR) has storm racers.
In a scene playing out all over Florida, animal rescuers are racing to help animals in rural shelters in the path of the storm.
Florida Urgent Rescue took the lead in evacuating 49 dogs and cats from two rural shelters, and assisted other organizations transporting animals in danger at additional shelters.
FUR was on the ground at Wakulla County Animal Services in Crawfordville, FL, where Helene is expected to make landfall, evacuating 29 cats and 6 dogs. Paws Humane Society in Columbus, GA has worked with FUR in numerous emergencies over the years, and they took in all 29 cats and one dog.
At the same time the Wakulla evacuation was underway, other FUR members were evacuating 14 dogs in outdoor kennels in Union County, moving them to boarding at Pet Paradise Jacksonville Airport until the storm passes. The remaining 5 dogs from Wakulla County are also boarding at Pet Paradise.
FUR has continued working with other animal welfare organizations throughout the state to help evacuate animals in danger at other rural shelters, including animals from Madison, Taylor and Suwannee Counties.
PHOTO: Florida Urgent Rescue Founder and Executive Director Mike Merrill helping evacuate dogs and cats from Wakulla County Animal Services in the path of Hurricane Helene.
