EAGLE POINT, Ore. – The Worthington Fire is located in a rural area of Jackson County with many ranches. When forced to evacuate, many of the homeowners didn’t know what to do with their livestock.
A local volunteer organization, Southern Oregon Emergency Aid who works closely with first responders went in and helped when the level 3 evacuation order came down. Founder and Executive Director, Linda Bacon, says their trained volunteers are the heart of her organization.
“We called people at 11 o’clock last night who hadn’t been out yet who jumped up out of bed and came out and helped,” said Bacon.
While Bacon can’t disclose how many livestock were saved, she did say volunteers were out until 2:30 Friday morning. She says while many people love to come out and help transport livestock, people who aren’t properly trained and work with first responders can do more harm than good. Her volunteers have various training before getting called to help remove animals from harms way. The agency also says it works hand-in-hand with first responders and follows their lead.
Southern Oregon Emergency Aid is a non-profit organization that helps transport and house livestock in response to disasters. The service is free to the owner. For more information call 541-226-1124.
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