Coast Guard Rescues Dog

The United States Coast Guard reports that it has rescued 106 people and six animals, including the dog pictured, from flooding in the Pacific Northwest in the last two days.

The football field of Chehalis High School in Chehalis, Washington, was used to deposit survivors and as a temporary, emergency airfield for the Coast Guard rescue helicopters. Other agencies are also hard at work helping flood victims, for example, the Lewis and Mason County Sheriff's Departments, the Washington State Air National Guard and the National Guard.

Included in the rescue was a woman near Pacific City, Washington, and entire families and their bedraggled looking pets, looking just a little worse for the wear after the exciting helicopter flight, with its noise and high wind speeds.

In one rescue, at night, a man was saved from cold waters next to his house. The cameras show a half submerged air conditioning fan spinning in concert with the helicopter rotors, the heavy downdraft making it look like the disabled unit is still working. In another rescue the crew expertly lowers the basket to a point right between some trees and a house. It disappears under the awning of the house for a time, and rises again after the crew loads it with an older woman who had been stranded.

FEMA and the Coast Guard Auxiliary are assisting with communications after blackouts hit several areas. A number of volunteers are helping to locate stranded people or mariners who are in trouble, part of an organization called the Citizen's Action Network. They are also on the watch for fuel leaks and other releases of pollutants into the flood waters, a common problem in such disasters. Oil and gas storage tanks will often leak, and materials from industry and local businesses can be toxic, not to mention the many cars and trucks that are under water and leaking gasoline or diesel fuel into the waters.

Coast Guard helicopters continue to patrol the area, looking on rooftops and in trees and brush for people who are in trouble. The air crews are well trained to drop a rescue person down, secure the flood victims, and hoist them safely into the hovering helicopter. Matters can be complicated by fast moving flood waters or high air speeds during storms, but the crews are used to making rescues at sea, when all of these conditions prevail.

The final cost of the floods in lives and dollars has yet to be determined, but the Coast Guard is working hard to prevent any more loss of life.

Coast Guard Rescues Flood Victims, USCG