Rescuers descending into a deep cave to retrieve a trapped hunting dog came face to face with an unexpected cave dweller: a 2-year-old, 200-pound bear that was fast asleep.
On Oct. 11, a rescue team was dispatched to English Mountain, Tennessee, to retrieve a dog named Charlie who was trapped approximately 40 feet inside a narrow cave shaft. After hiking to the mouth of the cave, the team, comprising rope rescue technicians from the Waldens Creek Volunteer Fire Department (WCFD), Sevier County Fire & Rescue, Sevier County Volunteer Rescue Squad, and the Catons Chapel/Richardsons Cove Volunteer Fire Department, prepared to locate Charlie.
A day later, footage revealed that the bear had left the cave and not returned. This time, Capt. Lanier was accompanied by WCFD firefighter Christian Ellard and firefighter Andrew Wojturski of Sevier County Fire & Rescue. The trio reentered the cave on a rope system, found Charlie, and lifted him to safety using a specially fashioned harness.
The pup was quickly reunited with his relieved owner.
WCFD shared on their post “All told, Charlie was trapped in the cave for three days, and for some of that time shared it (unwillingly) with an approximately two-year-old, 200-pound bear. He was dehydrated and hungry but in otherwise good condition.”
In the same post, they also expressed their gratitude to the different departments that attempted to make this rescue a success.
Thousands of netizens responded to the unusual and heartwarming rescue, with hundreds commenting.
“Wonderful reading happy news in these times. Heartfelt thanks to the firefighters who went to such great lengths to save Charlie,” wrote one social media user. “Volunteer firefighters are one of a kind, but adding pup rescuers just makes you all supermen/women!” wrote another.
