The recent wildfires in California have caused historic destruction and displaced many families. In the face of this tragedy the victims and rescue teams have been searching for stories of hope.
And much of the good news has been about animals miraculously surviving the fires—like one cat who emerged from a particularly badly-hit area.
A wildfire called the Holiday Farm Fire has swept through Oregon, destroying hundreds of homes and buildings across over 170,000 acres.
But in the aftermath of one fire in Blue River, an Oregon State Police Trooper found a survivor in the wreckage: a cat!
The lucky feline was fittingly nicknamed “Smokey.” He appears to be covered in ash and a bit scuffed up, but doesn’t appear to have any serious injuries or burns.
A Facebook post says he even got a “VIP ride in a Trooper car to the vet’s office.”
It isn’t clear who the cat belongs to, or if he’s been reunited with them yet. If he has a family, it’s possible that they had to evacuate before being able to save the cat.
The small town of Blue River was virtually destroyed by the wildfire.
“Literally the whole town of Blue River is totally leveled, so three of our houses and our business, the fire station, the post office, the local clinic,” fire department lietenant Samantha Winningham told Today.
“And we’re in a really small community, so a lot of our close family friends [lost their homes] too. It’s all gone.”
Despite the mass destruction, there have been no casualties in the town. The rescue team can take solace in the fact that even the cat survived.
“Everyone in our town made it out and alive and safe,” Winningham said. “We might not have been able to save the structures but we were able to save the people. So at least we have that.”
We’re so glad Smokey survived, and everyone in this badly-hit community is safe. We wish them all a fast recovery!
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