WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — Multiple dogs died at a doggy day care in Northeast D.C. Monday night.
Water broke through the front glass of District Dogs after six feet of water had accumulated along Rhode Island Avenue.
Several cars and a truck initially were stuck under the overpass of the bridge nearby. Ten people were rescued from the street, along with 10 people and 20 dogs inside the day care. Multiple dogs were not able to make it out.
DC Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly said he has never seen anything like this but the area has a history of flooding.
Just a year ago, flooding caused $10,000 in damage at District Dogs.
The landlord installed barriers outside the facility but it didn’t keep back the water.
As to why this keeps happening in the area, Donnelly said it will be investigated. He said DC Water is digging close to 100 miles of tunnels under the city to help reduce flooding, but that’s still in the works.
He said it’s a tough situation but employees inside did their best.
“I think the Dogs employees were heroes,” Donnelly said. “We’re going to look at this, figure out what happened. We’ll work with DC Water and all the relevant authorities and figure out what’s going on here.”
A 9-month-old dog, Emmy, was one of the dogs who was rescued.
Her owner, Caroline Kruk, sprinted to District Dogs when she saw video of Emmy being carried out in a firefighter’s arms.
“I broke down crying the second I started to see her so I’m glad for the happy ending. I am heartbroken for those who weren’t as lucky as I was,” Kruk said. “I love her with my whole heart and just to think that I would lose her so quickly, was really just scaring me.”
Founder of District Dogs, Jacob Hensely said in a statement that he is heartbroken over the incident.
We appreciate the quick and heroic actions of our employees and first responders to rescue animals. We are focused on doing everything we can to suport impacted employee and customers during this difficult time. We have no further details at this time, while we continue to work with DC officials reviewing the incident.
Jacob Hensley, founder of District Dogs
