Dog rescued from tree

Get the details at INCIDENT REPORT.



Jeremy Brown thought he had seen everything as chief of the Harlowe Volunteer Fire Department.

That was until Saturday morning.

A group of volunteer firefighters needed more than an hour to rescue a dog that had gotten its head stuck in the bottom of a tree.

"We've never been taught anything about extricating a dog from a tree," Brown said. "We're good at cars, not at trees. There's no textbook to tell you how to extricate a dog from a tree."

Brown said the dog, named Rocky, is just fine, especially considering its ordeal.

"The biggest thing is that we saved the dog's life," he said. "The dog's fine, no injuries, no nothing."

Brown said he received a call at 11:19 a.m. Saturday and was surprised what he found when he arrived at the scene on Belangia Road in eastern Craven County.

"The dog was chasing a squirrel or opossum and ran right into a hole at the bottom of the tree," Brown said. "One of the neighbors asked how we were going to get the dog out, and I said ‘I don't know.'"

Brown called for his equipment truck, which has chain saws and extrication equipment such as the Jaws of Life.

He said he and nine of his volunteers determined that the 40-foot tree was hollow at the bottom and proceeded to saw the tree down about three feet above where the dog was stuck.

He said crews realized a root of the tree had the dog pinned. They then used the Jaws of Life to basically peel and pry open the tree down the sides and then were able to free the dog.

"When we got the dog out, everybody cheered," Brown said.

He said despite all the commotion going on, the dog, which he described as a lab-pit bull mix, remained calm.

"The dog tried to move a little, but then stayed still. It was incredible," Brown said. "Considering the saws and everything going on around him, he remained calm. Apparently he knew we were trying to help him."

He said the rescue produced a good community feeling.

"I've been doing this for 14 years, and I've never had to extricate a dog from a tree," Brown said. "It was unreal."

The owner of the dog could not be reached for comment.


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