90 Shelter Animals Airlifted to the Northeast to Make Room for Pets Affected By Hurricane Ian
Greater Good Charities
Ninety rescue pets are out of harm's way and helping other animals thanks to a recent move.
On October 2, in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, Greater Good Charities launched an emergency airlift of 54 cats and 36 dogs through its Good Flights program.
The life-saving flight departed from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. It moved the 90 adoptable pets out of animal shelters in Naples, Fort Meyers, and other areas of Florida severely impacted by Hurricane Ian, making room for an expected influx of animals affected by the destructive storm. According to Greater Good Charities, several Florida shelters were damaged during Hurricane Ian, while others are preparing to take in pets that were lost, injured, and abandoned during the storm.
Hurricane Ian made landfall as an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 storm with sustained winds of 150 mph on Wednesday just after 3 p.m. local time, near Cayo Costa, Fla., according to the National Hurricane Center.
By Thursday morning, more than 2.5 million people in Florida were without power as a result of the widespread devastation caused by the storm, which snapped apart trees, leveled homes, and tore down power lines across the coastline.
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Greater Good Charities
At least 99 fatalities have been reported in Florida since the Category 4 storm moved across the state last week, CNN and CBS News reported.
"This emergency flight of shelter pets from Florida is one of many efforts that Greater Good Charities is doing to help the people and pets impacted by Hurricane Ian," Liz Baker, CEO of Greater Good Charities, shared in a statement obtained by PEOPLE. "We are planning for possible future transports and are also working diligently with partners in affected and surrounding areas to send in pet food, supplies, and humanitarian aid to help the people and pets reeling from this catastrophic disaster."
The Humane Society of Broward County, Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League, Collier County Domestic Animal Services, and Gulf Coast Humane Society all sent shelter pets on the emergency charity flight, which was supported by donations from Tito's Handmade Vodka and The Animal Rescue Site.
The Humane Society of Broward County
"By helping the affected areas, specifically taking animals from the shelters that were there before the storm, it alleviates pressure for the shelter staff, to focus on helping the incoming displaced animals, " Cherie Wachter, the vice president of marketing for The Humane Society of Broward County, explained.
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Staff members from St. Hubert's Animal Welfare Center, Liberty Humane Society, the Pennsylvania SPCA, and Lucky Dog Animal Rescue were on site when the rescue flight landed at the Morristown Airport in Morristown, New Jersey.
Greater Good Charities
The 90 pets are now settling in at their new shelters and preparing to find homes in the Northeast.
"When disaster strikes, the animal welfare community bands together to help pets and people in need. St. Hubert's Animal Welfare Center is one of the organizations that has stepped up to help our Florida shelter partners as they deal with this crisis," Diane Ashton, the director of communications at St. Hubert's Animal Welfare Center, said. "Some of the pets evacuated from Florida will be ready for adoption at our shelter in New Jersey soon. Right now, they're getting a lot of TLC from our staff! We can't wait to find these wonderful pets new loving homes."
To learn more about Greater Good Charities and the organization's work, visit the nonprofit's website.
