Best Friends Rapid Response Team now in Oakville, Iowa.
It is official. Best Friends Animal Society Rapid Response has deployed to Iowa.
After receiving a request for help from the State of Iowa Emergency Operations Center, the Best Friends team is already at Oakville, a small town in southeastern Iowa that is currently under five feet of water following this past week’s floods.
Similar to the scene after Hurricane Katrina, the swiftly raising waters has forced residents to evacuate their homes, leaving companion animals behind. Having started at sunrise today, Rapid Response Manager
Richard Crook and his team have been scouting the area via boat, in the search for abandoned pets. Moving from door-to-door following a grid of the town, they hope to have 50% of the homes scouted by this afternoon.
The Rapid Response team is cooperating with the local and state authorities to make sure that all companion animals are recovered and returned to their families. Earlier this morning, they rescued a mother cat and her litter of kittens from the second floor of a flooded house. The happy reunion with their guardians is expected this afternoon. Any animals saved who are not immediately claimed, will be taken to the
Mediapolis Veterinary Clinic, located around 20 miles southwest of Oakville.
A rural community, farmers also had to leave their livestock, including one man who released 500 pigs prior to fleeing from the flood. In their search for higher ground, some have found refuge on the town’s levee, causing damage. Already more than 20 pigs have been shot in an effort prevent further harm; however, Crook is working with officials to devise a non-lethal alternative, while still protecting the levee.
Although nearby areas have already begun to recede, the flood in Oakville is expected to remain up to a week.
THREE WAYS YOU CAN HELP:
1. You can help support this rescue effort by sponsoring
Andrew Prendeville during his upcoming race in Newton, Iowa. All funds donated from this weekend’s race will be designated to the Iowa flood rescue. To make a pledge, please go to the
Racing Laps for Best Friends donation page. For more information, see the
Racing Laps for Best Friends website and
Driving for Donations in Iowa, June 212. Donate directly to the
Best Friends Rescue Fund.
3. Interested in helping? We have no call-out for deployment at this time (as of Wednesday afternoon); however, we are establishing a “ready” list.
Before we are able to send volunteers in to the field, they must complete some specific coursework, which is available through the
FEMA website. At this time, only volunteers with proof that they hold the following FEMA courses will be placed on the “ready” list.
The first four are
REQUIRED. The last one is
PREFERRED.
-
FEMA ICS 100 Introduction to the Incident Command System (ICS)
-
FEMA ICS 200 ICS for Single Resources and Initial Action Incidents-
FEMA IS 700 National Incident Management System (NIMS): Introduction
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FEMA IS 800.B National Response Framework: An Introduction
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FEMA IS 10 Animals in a Disaster, Module A: Awareness and PreparednessAfter you’ve taken the courses, please contact Ellen Gilmore at
elleng@bestfriends.org to find out more about joining the Best Friends Rapid Response team.
For more information:
• Check out
Notes from the Field, a blog that will include day-to-day rescue details from volunteer, Barb Davis
•
Best Friends deploys rescue team to Iowa•
Best Friends Animal Society Rapid Response Community•
United Animal Nations•
List of Iowa facilities offering animal sheltering services for those affected by the flood
• Those who have left pets behind are asked to contact Animal Help at Best Friends by calling 435-644-2001 ext. 4789 or by e-mail
animalhelp@bestfriends.org for additional information.
Posted by Jennifer Hayes, Best Friends Staff
Photo credit: FEMA/Jocelyn Augustino, from New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.