On Saturday in Paradise, California, Firefighter Chris Harvey and Sacramento Fire Chief Gary Loesch were traveling down Honey Run Road when they saw something very unexpected.
Only a few days prior, the catastrophic Camp Fire had torn through the Paradise hamlet in the Sierra Nevada foothills, leaving behind the burned-out carcasses of houses and automobiles. A community of seniors and new families had been completely destroyed by the raging fire, which also took the lives of many animals. The area now appeared to be empty.
Or so they believed.
While en route to investigate an accident caused by a falling tree, Harvey and Loesch spotted two weary animals emerging from the smoke.
The donkeys were slowly hobbling down the center of the road in the opposite direction, and it was clear to Harvey that they were very lost.
“We pulled over to let them pass, and saw that they looked very tired, worn out and thirsty,” Harvey told The Dodo. “I tried to give them some water in my hand from a water bottle, but it kept spilling out.”
Harvey took some apples out of his and Loesch’s bag lunches and gave them to the donkeys since he knew they needed more than just a few sips of water after what they had gone through.
Harvey was able to immediately observe the positive impact his small deed had on the surviving.
They consumed the apples swiftly and were appreciative of the treat, Harvey added. We requested animal control personnel to go retrieve the donkeys by calling base camp.
The donkeys were kept with Harvey and Loesch until they were secure in animal control’s custody. Even though it’s unclear whether the donkeys will be reunited with their family, their rescue offers some optimism just when it’s needed.
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