Volunteers, employees overwhelmed at animal centers after flooding

ST. CLAIR COUNTY, Ill. – Last Tuesday’s heavy rains prompted the St. Clair County Animal Control Center to halt operations due to flooding. All dogs and cats were safely rescued and rehomed to either the Humane Society or a foster home.

The mental and physical exhaustion of the volunteers has taken a toll.

“We were already having a hard summer, it’s been really hard on animal welfare right now. People are losing their housing and when they lose their housing, they can’t keep their big dogs,” Savannah McDonald, co-executive director at Belleville Area Humane Society, said. “Adoptions are slow across the country.”

Meanwhile, across the street at St. Clair County Animal Control Center, they expect their facility to be open tomorrow.

“We’ve been talking a lot about how this flood felt worse to us this year because we were already so exhausted that it just came in at a point where we have to laugh or you’ll cry,” McDonald said. “It’s been really hard emotionally on my staff, and on me, too.”

While both locations are slowly getting back on their feet, St. Clair County Animal Control and Belleville Area Humane Society are in need of donations.

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