Emergency officials are still searching for several lost and possibly injured dogs following a deadly highway accident in Eastern Idaho last week.
Two people and 14 dogs were killed in the Friday morning crash.
According to Idaho State Police, a cube van was traveling north on Interstate 15, west of Shelley, when the vehicle left the road, went into a median and struck an embankment.
The 38-year-old passenger, Ann Watson of Phoenix, Arizona died on the scene. The 40-year-old driver, Christopher Kracht, als of Phoenix, was taken by air ambulance to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Centre where he later died of his injuries.
Kracht and Watson were the founders of Who Saved Who Rescue, a nonprofit organization based in Phoenix.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to support funeral arrangements for the couple. A post on the page says Watson passed doing what he loved: saving dogs.
“Ann was tragically killed in an auto accident on her way to rescue animals, that was her passion. She saved so many dogs and passed doing what she loved.”
The couple was taking 48 dogs to EJ Rescue Canada based in Airdrie, Alta., to be adopted.
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After the crash, 18 dogs were accounted for, with about 16 missing.
Officials from the Blackfoot Animal Shelter and Rescue were on the scene after the accident, hoping to get the dogs to safety as quickly as possible.
“We had a lot of our shelter volunteers trying to make sure that we got the animals who were remaining off the roadway into safety,” Lisa Tornabene with the rescue said.
“They contacted our shelter to bring our transport van out to try to get the animals back to our shelter, to veterinary care. etc.”
Officials searched a five-mile radius of the crash for the missing dogs, and have continued each day since the May 15 accident.
“Rescuers and volunteers were out Friday night and Saturday night until about 11 p.m., Sunday until about 10 p.m. or 11 p.m., well into the night,” Tornabene said.
Four additional dogs have since been taken to the shelter.
“We have 21 of them are at our shelter. One of them remains at the animal hospital that was working with us to conduct the surgeries. From what we understand, they’re doing very well and she came out of surgery fine,” said Tornabene.
Tornabene said searches continue for the roughly nine dogs still on the loose.
“We’re continuing to receive calls, we do know there is a pair of dogs that are being fed by a family. So they’re near the accident site,” she said.
Tornabene said the dogs will be taken to Airdrie in the next two to three days, where EJ Rescue will adopt them out.
EJ Rescue Canada posted on its Facebook page thanking the Blackfoot Rescue for its help.
“We also send our thanks to the communities in Idaho, and Blackfoot Animal Shelter and Rescue for stepping up to help, for all the hard work to locate missing dogs, as well as the comfort you have provided to the survivors,” the rescue said.
“We are devastated by the loss of life of many dogs on the transport, and the future struggles of the surviving dogs.”
The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
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