Rescue 1: Terrier saved after pile-up
A Boston terrier who was shaken up in a massive freeway pileup in Detroit was carried to safety by a firefighter who knows a few things about dogs in distress.
Matt Schaecher works as a Detroit firefighter two days a week, and as a cruelty investigator for the Humane Society of Huron Valley for the other five.
When Schaecher came upon a woman’s crumpled car at the mile-long accident scene on southbound Interstate 75, he asked if she needed help. “I think my dog might be injured,” she responded.
Schaecher pulled the dog, named Riley, from the car and checked him out while other emergency workers attended to the driver, Heather Ramsey of Ferndale.
“He was shaking almost uncontrollably,” Schaecher said. “Probably a combination of being extremely scared and cold.” As Shaecher cradled the dog in a blanket, Detroit News photographer David Coates took the photo above.
Riley wasn’t injured, and Shaecher placed the dog in the ambulance with his owner. Ramsey has since been released from the hospital, according to AnnArbor.com
Three people, including two children, were killed in the chain reaction of crashes.
Schaecher, who is the lead cruelty investigator for the Humane Society of Huron Valley in Washtenaw County’s Superior Township, said the widely distributed photo of Riley and him served as a positive note amid the lingering horror of the crash.
“Obviously any accident scene or any emergency scene that involves children is extremely difficult,” he said. My heart just goes out to the families of the people that have lost loved ones. I can’t imagine being in that position.”
Posted by jwoestendiek February 4th, 2013 under Muttsblog.
Tags: animals, boston terrier, chain reaction, crash, cruelty, detroit, dog, dogs, firefighter, Humane Society of Huron Valley, interstate 75, investigator, Matt Schaecher, pets, photo, photograph, pileup, rescue, rescued, riley, whiteout
Comment from smoketoomuch
Time February 5, 2013 at 12:52 pm
When will people learn to drive in accordance with conditions and keep a safe distance between cars?! (Rhetorical question – I know they will never learn).
It’s better to arrive late and in one piece than not at all, and especially if you take others with you!
Sympathies to the families of the deceased and injured, and kudos to all those first responders out there whose job it is to deal with these kinds of tragedies on an all too frequent basis. Special props to Matt Schaecher for doing what he could to comfort little Riley who was doubtless scared to death.