Home > After Katrina: Saving the animals
A break well deserved
Cora actually made the flight out of Monroe, La., Saturday morning.
“On the plane they announced, ‘Welcome to the only flight out of Monroe, today,’” she said.
She is resting for a return trip in a couple of weeks where she will pick up where she left off with the animals.
“They were wanting to bring in 100 more animals, Sunday,” she said.
Monroe experienced 80 mph winds from Hurricane Rita and volunteers had to hold a large shelter door in place for three hours to keep it from blowing away. They were soaked when they could finally relax.
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Rita has arrived
Heavy rains from Hurricane Rita have arrived in Monroe at the animal shelter set up by United Animal Nations and EARS.
“Rain bands are coming through and the winds are probably about 35 mph right now,” Cora said on the phone early this morning.
“It’s just pouring here and we have tornado watches out. That means we can’t take the animals outside so, we’re walking them as best we can inside the shelter.”
“Thank God we put out the sandbags because we would be flooded, already.”
Cora was scheduled to fly back to Greenville this morning, for a two-week break from running the shelter, but those plans most likely will be postponed.
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Hunkering down
Cora and her volunteers at the shelter in Monroe, La., have been sandbagging, preparing for a worst-case Hurricane Rita scenario. Officials are concerned that the storm could park itself right over the area.
“They’re telling us it could stall out right over us.” Cora said, Friday afternoon when I talked to her on the phone.
“They’re saying we could get as much as 18-20 inches of rain before it’s over. We’ve got sandbags everywhere. I’m at a disaster, preparing for a disaster,” she said.
There are 14 volunteers helping her with more expected to arrive. Two are stranded in Houston.
The winds are at a steady 10 mph at the shelter but, so far, no rain.
“I can see the outer bands but, there’s still sunshine where we are,” she said. “We’ll just have to hunker down and ride it out.”
Cora is finishing up her two-week stint in Monroe and is scheduled to return to Greenville Saturday morning.
“I have a morning flight out but, we’ll see. We’ll see.”
Whaley waiting out storm
Pitt County Animal Shelter Director Michele Whaley and her group in Hattiesburg, Miss., are preparing for 70 mph winds from Hurricane Rita.
“It’s coming. We can feel the winds picking up and there are tornado watches, now,” Whaley said.
“We’ll hunker down until it passes.”
As of 3 p.m. they have experienced only scattered rains at the shelter where they are caring for 900 animals. They are moving some of those to a more centralized area, away from the storm. Supplies are also being moved indoors.
“You want to be prepared,” Whaley said.
Whaley planned to ship some supplies to the Monroe, La., shelter where Cora is in need of them but, Rita has cancelled those plans, for now.
In other news, United Animal Nations has issued a Press release announcing their commitment of $100,000 to help rebuild animal shelters damaged by Hurricane Katrina.
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Preparing for Hurricane Rita
Cora and her team of volunteers in Monroe are watching Hurricane Rita as it approaches the Texas and Louisiana coast . The EARS shelter in Jackson, Miss., is doing the same. They are battening down the shelters, making sure everything is secure. Some rearranging is taking place at the Monroe shelter, in preparation for any flooding that may occur.
As of noon Thursday, the path of Hurricane Rita was projected to pass well to the west of Monroe so, it looks as if they are safe, for now. The Jackson shelter is about 2 hours east of Monroe.
Alexis Raymond, Communications Director for United Animal Nations, based out of Sacramento, Ca., said the agency is monitoring the situation in the Gulf and will access the situation to see if they can offer assistance in any way.
“Currently, there are no plans to open other shelters,” Raymond said. “We are hoping that people are heeding the warnings and are taking their animals with them.”
Cora currently has 133 dogs at the shelter in Monroe, all from Gonzales, and she may be getting 100 more, soon. She is preparing as quickly as she can for any new arrivals.
“This is hard work,” she said, as she was eating her breakfast of Cool Ranch Doritos, Thursday morning. “I don’t ever want another summer like this.”
900 Animals in Hattiesburg shelter
In Hattiesburg, where Michele Whaley is working with the North Carolina State Animal Response Team, more than 1,500 animals have been taken in and cared for in the shelter set up by Mississippi’s Animal Response Team (MART). There are approximately 900 animals at the shelter that are being cared for, now. The team from North Carolina is help in the efforts to reunite these animals with their families.
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Sunday story link
Here’s a link to my story, Disaster is a nightmare come to life for Katrina animals. that published in the Sunday, September 18 edition of The Daily Reflector. Thanks for all of your coments and, if you haven’t had a chance to read it, click on the link above.
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133 dogs
The shelter in Monroe had it’s first reunion yesterday. The owners of a yellow lab drove three hours to pick up the dog.
“The dog went ecstatic when they got here,” Cora said. “Things like that make it all worth it. That’s why I’m doing this.”
That leaves the shelter with 133 dogs but, Cora is preparing for more animals, having fences constructed, just in case more need to be sent to the shelter.
Meanwhile, they are watching all updates on Hurricane Rita.
“We’re going to secure the place and make it safe,” she said.
The temperature at the shelter Tuesday reached 107º.
News from Hattiesburg
I heard from Pitt County Animal Director Michele Whaley this morning. She and her group arrived safely in Hattiesburg. She is the Logistics Chief Deputy of an emergency operations center her group will run for 10 days. She says the HSUS is sheltering over 800 animals at this site.
Michele has been dispatched to the Mississippi Emergency Operation Center in Hattiesburg, Miss. with North Carolina’s State Animal Response Team (SART). After a request from Mississippi’s Board of Animal Health and Department of Agriculture her team headed to Hattiesburg to help Mississippi in the efforts to save animals through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC).
In Hattiesburg, her team is assisting the Mississippi Animal Response Team (MART) in the transition from a response to a recovery phase.
The following have been dispatched with Whaley:
Mary Blinn (Charlotte, N.C.), shelter veterinarian, Charlotte/Mecklenburg Animal Control
Diane Ferello (Zebulon, N.C.), large animal technician, N.C. State University’s School of Veterinary Medicine
Wike Graham (Charlotte, N.C.), Captain, Charlotte Fire Department
Dr. Ellen Hoots (Fuquay-Varina, N.C.), veterinarian, Hoof Beats Vet Practice
Mark Howell (Hickory, N.C.), emergency programs specialist, N.C. Department of Agriculture’s Emergency Programs - Catawba County
Chris Peninger (Charlotte, N.C.), animal control, Charlotte/Mecklenburg Animal Control; supervisor, County Animal Response Team
Robbi Porter (Charlotte, N.C.), kennel supervisor, Charlotte/Mecklenburg Animal Control
Cameron Sheffield (Raleigh, N.C.), project coordinator, Capstrat
Sharron Stewart (Four Oaks, N.C.), deputy pesticide administrator, N.C. Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services
Jimmy Tickel (Roanoke Rapids, N.C.), veterinarian, N.C. Department of Agriculture’s Emergency Programs - Halifax County
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134 dogs
The Animal Planet rescue truck pulled into Monroe at about 1:30 am Tuesday Morning and delivered 134 dogs from the Gonzales shelter to Cora and her nine volunteers. Cora is taking photos of each dog so they can be included on petfinder.com. She hopes to find some of the dog’s owners by searching Red Cross shelter sites on the internet, for any information she can find.
“I’m gonna do my best, if it’s the last thing in the world I do, to reunite these animals,” she said, Tuesday afternoon.
Going through the paperwork, which can sometimes be sketchy, Cora is learning what these animals have been through in the past few weeks.
“Some were picked up floating on pieces of wood, ” she said.
More volunteers are expected to arrive in Monroe in the coming days.
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Animals arriving at new shelter
I spoke with Cora last night and she notified me that things are moving very quickly in Monroe. The new shelter is ready to use and they will start excepting animals this morning. The Animal Planet rescue truck was due to arrive early this morning with about 200 animals onboard. Cora’s EARS team will take over their care and begin searching for their owners.
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Never a dull moment
Cora has been notified today by the La., State veterinarian to expect 200 animals in the new shelter she has established, just outside of Monroe, La. The animals she will receive have all been decontaminated, vaccinated, defleaed, and microchipped. She has 14 volunteers on site and expects to have 25-30 in the next few days. They will take digital photos of all the animals to get them posted on Petfinder.com.
Other happenings: The ceiling above the shower in Cora’s hotel room collapsed on Barbara Hollands, the Northeast Region Director for EARS, who had just reported for duty in Monroe, Sunday. She wasn’t hurt but, in talking to Cora about the incident her reply was “never a dull moment.”
Whaley headed to Hattiesburg
Michele Whaley, Pitt County Animal Shelter Director and team leader of the Pitt County Animal Response Team is headed to Hattiesburg, Mississippi today with a team of veterinarians and emergency management personnel. They will run an emergency operations center for 10 days. I’ll try to keep up with the news from Michele while she’s there.
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Moving along
I‘ve been writing my story for this coming Sunday’s Daily Reflector today. So, excuse my ignoring the blog. Lots has happened since we returned from Gonzales.
Cora learned, on the trip back, that she has received permission to move the shelter to a farm in the country. It’s the first site she looked at, this past week.
Volunteers are loading up supplies to move, now. Things are moving fast.
I will leave, if I still have my ride, tomorrow morning. The show will go on, here, in Monroe.
Animals that are owned by evacuees taking shelter in Monroe, are allowing fostering of their animals. They don’t want to take those dogs to the new site because of the contamination issue with the critical dogs that may be coming in. They hope to have the new site running by Monday.
Cora will update me with news while she is still in Monroe. I’ll post it here when I get it.
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Trip to Gonzales
Cora visited the Lamar Dixon Expo Center in Gonzalas, Louisiana, the main staging area for animals rescued out of New Orleans. Imagine eight pavilions , each about half the size of a football stadium, filled with horses , dogs, cats, pigs, swans, you name it. There are about 3000 animals that have been taken in at this site. At least 1,000 pet crates are stacked around the outside of the buildings. Pet food on palettes tower on each side of the aisles inside. Some of the organizations participating in rescue efforts include: Code 3 Associates, The International Fund of Animal Welfare, Animal Planet Rescue, SPCA of Los Angeles, the Humane Society of Missouri, the Animal Rescue League of Boston, the American Humane Association Animal Emergency Services, the Humane Society of the United States. This list goes on.
Cora, along with United Animal Nations President Jennifer Fearing, got busy organising a VMAT area that cares for incoming animals in critical condition that had been set up inside a stall. They worked until 1 am and finished only one stall. There is so much going on at Lamar Dixon that it is overwhelming to stand and watch the work. I watched a horse getting care from a vetrinarian for chemical burns on her legs. The horse had been left in a stall, in standing water, after the hurricane.
More on the trip later. For now, we are headed back to Monroe.
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Road Trip
Cora and I are packing our bags and heading to Baton Rouge to pick up UAN President Jennifer Fearing to accompany her to Gonzales which is the main port for the rescued animals coming out of New Orleans. I’ll report on the news from there if I can get online. Stay tuned…..
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How you can help
I’ve been getting emails asking for information about how to help. There are several ways.
If you are interested in helping United Animal Nations
-Go to UAN.org and make a donation
Or, mail a donation to:
United Animal Nations
PO Box 188890
Sacramento, CA 95818
-Drop off donatins at Helen’s Grooming World and Pet Motel in Greenville. Make check payable to EARS and mark it Hurricane Katrina Relief.
-Drop off items or make a donation at Petsmart in Greenville.
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Working as a team
Each day Cora pulls her team of volunteers together in the kitchen area of the shelter to update them on news and review the day’s events. New protocols were put in place after a volunteer was bitten during a routine, daily walk, Tuesday. The animals are getting anxious after being in a shelter situation for almost three weeks. Since most all of these animals are owned, they’re used to being in a home environment.
Watching Ophelia
We are all watching the news for reports on Hurricane Ophelia. Michele Whaley, Pitt County Animal Shelter Director and and team leader of the Pitt County Animal Response Team is keeping us abreast of the situation in North Carolina. EARS members throughout North Carolina have been alerted to contact their local County Animal Response Team, or CART, leaders should a situation occur that requires their assistance. Daily Reflector reporter Scott Batchelor and photojournalist Jason A. Frizzelle have been dispatched to Atlantic Beach to report from there.
Chris Collins, Lead Forecaster
with the National Weather
Service Station tracks
Tropical Storm Ophelia
Tuesday in Newport NC.
(Jason A. Frizzelle)
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Records check
At the shelter, Paula Karrer, a certified veterinarian technician from Tucson, AZ makes sure the medical needs of the animals are met. Here, she checks the records of four chihuahuas.
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Another location search
Another excursion into the country takes Cora to a farm owned by the University of Louisiana Monroe. The ULM farm proves to be too small for the shelters needs, but after talking with Operations Manager Herman Slade, right, the two decide that this would be a good place for storing supplies, if the need arises.
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Interview
Cora takes a break to give an interview to local TV station, KNOE TV 8, reporter Jennifer Teitel and photojournalist Ed Rowan. The station is producing a story about the shelter and the need for a space to move it’s operations. Three site were investigated today but still no concrete plans have been made. The Bayou Kennel Club and PAWS in Monroe have been working hard to help locate a site.
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Lots of hands, lots of willingness
The volunteers here in Monroe are top notch. They are ready for anything.
But it seems like they are waiting a lot and I wonder if other animal rescuers know about this shelter. It’s ready to take in more pets. I hear there is a great need for help in Gonzales, La., and Tylertown, Miss. I talked with a woman Sunday who said the situation was critical. Trained search and rescue personnel were direly needed.
This shelter in Monroe is prepared to take in many more animals. The volunteers are concerned that stranded and sheltered animals are not getting the help they need because the situation is simply overwhelming. The volunteers here want to help, now.
People tell us that animals are being shipped to California and Oklahoma. I know that’s the case with Louie, confirmed a stray (see yesterday). He was being taken to Oklahoma.
Yesterday I spoke with Beth Montes, who identified herself as a volunteer with the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary organization, who has become the chief of information on technology and logistics working in Tylertown, Miss. She said thousands of animals in New Orleans and surrounding areas need rescue and care. Trained rescue teams are at the top of the wish list.
Resources everywhere but here in Monroe are strained to breaking. The Red Cross is helping by providing hot meals for volunteers, but even human food is needed.
I heard about a tent city in a field with tarps over animal pens to help protect them from the unbearable heat. They have no fans to keep the animals cool. I hope those animals will make it to the Monroe shelter where the situation is better.
With so many pets being shipped so far away, I wonder how their owners will be reunited with them. Even though it’s being posted on Petfinder.com. lots are without computer access. Most pet owners are calling the shelter closest to their homes to try and locate their pets.
The shelter here is concerned and has the means and volunteers available to take more, if needed.
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Louie
This is Louie. He’s just one of the many fellows I’ve been hangin’ out with in Monroe.
His story’s not very clear but, from what I understand, he was rescued out of New Orleans with contusions, dehydration, and chemical burns. He couldn’t walk, at first, but now he’s doing well. He has been taken to another shelter but it was good to get to know him.
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New location search
Cora goes on an excursion to investigate a possible new home for the shelter with Jeanne Marcovitz, a member of the Bayou Kennel Club in Monroe.
The shelter will have to move it’s operations so the Civic Center can get on with business. This farm property in the country, but just off the interstate, looks like a good prospect to Cora.
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A day at a time
Normally, Ryan Guevara walks his three dogs in the front yard of his home in Chalmette, LA, just outside of New Orleans. But now that pastime is a cherished memory. His home was flooded and he has just recieved infomation that muck from a chemical spill is also present.
“They told me I wouldn’t be able to come back for 18-20 weeks,” he said while walking Pepper at the shelter. “We’re doing the best we can. I have a job interview in Monroe, today,” he said. “At least there’s some good news.”
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