The recent winter storm dumped up to 20 inches in some places in Sussex County causing power outages and structural damage to many buildings.
The Brandywine Valley SPCA was among those affected. Its two Georgetown campuses faced issues, leaving animals in those shelters without power.
BVSPCA Senior Director of Marketing and Communications Sara Smith says this isn’t the first time the shelter has been affected by inclement weather.
“We have our emergency plan in place, but in this case, we got some damage and extended power outages and we’re asking for the community to step-up and help us recover from this.” she said.
Smith says their main goal is getting dogs into foster homes, noting that those able to take dogs in won’t have a minimum or maximum time frame they’ll be expected to shelter an animal.
“Pick up a dog, welcome a dog into their home to foster for even a short period of time to help us make sure we can get the power back on, repairs some things, and get cleaned up and ready for them to come back as needed. Really, the animals are the first thing that we’re prioritizing.”
As of Wednesday, the shelter's power has been restored according to Smith, but they’re still in need of towel and blanket donations.
In that time frame, Smith says that the community has already been able to assist with several dogs,
"We are so grateful to the quick work of the community to help us send 22 dogs into foster from our Animal Rescue Center, where we were without power for an extended time." she said.
BVSPCA says its planning on installing upgrades to further bolster their emergency plan for inclement weather in the future, namely emergency generators that will provide power during future outages.
"The repair work is just beginning, which will be costly as we have trees down, fencing and structural damage to our outdoor areas at both locations." said Smith.
She also says that the shelter is still in need of foster homes for some animals,
"We still have a handful of dogs in need of foster and folks are welcome to stop by to adopt or foster today 12-6:30pm at the Animal Rescue Center on Shingle Point Rd and 12-7pm at our Georgetown Campus on Dupont Blvd." she told DPM.
Those interested in helping can visit bvspca.org
