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Mount Royal prof investigating protocols for pet evacuation in Fort Mac fire

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It was hard to even tell left from right amidst the chaos of fleeing families, honking cars and the wall of flames chasing Fort McMurray residents out of town during May’s devastating wildfire.

In a rush to get family members and neighbours out of town and to safety, many were forced to leave their pets behind.

But the rushed evacuation didn’t stop some, like Bryan Jones, from loading up a truck full of kennels, water and food to rescue the stranded animals.

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“I have a big heart when it comes to animals, and it was eating me alive hearing about all the people who had to leave pets behind,” Jones said.

For almost two weeks following the devastating wildfire that ravaged Fort McMurray, Jones and a team of impromptu volunteers drove truckloads full of cats, dogs — even a snake — from the abandoned city to their displaced owners.

“We had a huge list of home addresses from people reaching out to us on Facebook,” he said. “We worked with the fire department, went in and grabbed every animal we could.”

Eventually, Jones said the police banned unofficial volunteers from entering devastated areas.

This is just one of many instances that compelled Kimberly Williams, a professor working with Mount Royal University’s Centre for Community Disaster research, to investigate the pet evacuation process — or lack thereof — during the Fort McMurray wildfire.

“What I’ve heard so far, and it seems to be a common thread, is there wasn’t great communication,” Williams said. “RCMP and other first responders were doing their best to make sure all the humans were safe, but there wasn’t a plan to sort the animals.”

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There were many stories that surfaced online about Fort McMurray residents who had animals perish in the fire, and others who spent days — even weeks — trying to locate missing pets.

In a previous interview with media, one woman spoke out about the disorganization of pet rescue operations after her cat was recovered by an Alberta rescue agency and adopted out to someone else.

“When I started this study, it was looking at why, from my vantage point in Calgary, did this seem so disorganized,” Williams said. “I’ve learned there wasn’t a plan, and my thinking now is let’s make one.”

Animal rescuer Jones took a 12-hour bus all the way from northern Alberta to Calgary just to speak to Williams about his own experience trying to help evacuate the pets, before ultimately being shut out by city officials.

“It was a really frustrating experience. I wasn’t an experienced rescuer, but I was getting thousands of messages asking for help,” he said.

Using stories like Jones’, Williams is hoping her research can connect city officials, politicians and disaster management teams across the province to establish a concrete plan for pet evacuation and volunteer management.

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“I’m hearing from very committed folks advocating for a plan so the next time this happens, which it will, there’s already a system in place,” she said.

“A plan can prevent miscommunications and the consequences of those miscommunications.”

Individuals like Jones wanting to help but lacking direction on how to do so are already taking steps to make their volunteerism official; Jones has created a Facebook page called Bryan’s Animal Rescue Association, which he said is in the works of becoming an official organization.

“There are people who want to see this happen,” he said. “It’s time to go back to square one and start something that can’t be misinterpreted. I’m down here (Calgary) to get some answers.”

Six months into a 12-month research study, Williams will be heading back up to Fort McMurray in January. In the end, Williams said she hopes her research will help push for province-wide best practices for emergency pet evacuation during community disasters.

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