Carson City community, Red Cross and Nevada Humane Society bring aid in evacuation efforts
Submitted by Kelsey Penrose on Tue, 08/31/2021 - 1:14pm
As our neighbors to the west continue to evacuate due to the Caldor Fire, the Carson City community and its partners have risen to the challenge, offering evacuees shelter, food, animal care and more.
“We could not have done this without the help of the community,” said Red Cross worker Marilyn Linkem, working at the Carson City Community Center. “They’ve been so great, and have helped so much.”
Evacuation shelters in Carson City are operating at Fuji Park and the Community Center, while in Douglas County the evacuation shelter is operating out of the Douglas County Senior Center. All beds at these locations are currently filled.
However, dry camping spots are still available at Fuji Park, as well as for pets, who are under the care of Nevada Humane Society staff and volunteers at the Livestock Center.
Carson City Supervisor Lisa Schuette, who is the founder of Carson Animal Services Initiative, is one volunteer helping with the animals, who worked overnight and into Tuesday afternoon to care for the animals.
“I stayed because there was a need,” said Schuette. “It’s difficult for people to have to leave their animals, and we want to make sure their animals are safe. It’s something I could do to help.”
As of Tuesday at noon, there were 21 dogs, 11 cats, two turtles and two ferrets under the care of NHS staff, with spots still available for additional animals as more people continue to evacuate from South Lake Tahoe.
According to Greg Hall, Executive Director of the Nevada Humane Society, they would very much appreciate donations of cat litter and cat food; they are doing fine as far as dog food is concerned.
While they will never turn away donations of wire kennels, NHS is fully prepared with kennels and carriers, as they need to be able to evacuate their own shelter animals as well, said Hall.
Any donations, including monetary donations which are always appreciated and needed, can be given at any Nevada Humane Society shelter; the Carson City shelter is located at 549 Airport Road.
You can also find them at https://nevadahumanesociety.org/donate/
The Red Cross is operating the Carson City evacuation centers at Fuji Park and the Community Center, and are always looking for volunteers and monetary donations, especially since it is believed help will still be needed for those displaced by the fires well into the holiday season, according to the Red Cross.
They are unable to accept many in-person donations at this time because they lack the resources to clean items, due to COVID-19.
All shelters are following CDC guidelines, and require masks, social distancing, and health screenings in order to enter.
If you are interested in volunteering with the Red Cross, please visit https://www.redcross.org
Carson City’s FISH is actively looking for volunteers to help clean, paint and prepare rooms at their shelter located in the Whistle Stop Inn to be able to house evacuees as soon as possible.
Please contact gillian@nvfish.com if you can help.
According to Sheriff Ken Furlong, operations to assist Douglas County are going well.
“We have advanced support operations to support Douglas County in both evacuation centers as well as with NHP,” said Furlong. “At this point in time, we are doing very well in those support obligations.”
Check back with Carson Now for updates regarding the Caldor Fire, evacuations and more.
