Columbus Vet Evacuates Animals To His Home

Columbus Vet Evacuates Animals To His Home
Blaze Broke Out At Columbus Chemical Industries Monday Night

POSTED: 9:19 pm CDT May 12, 2009

Dr. David Gerber said he evacuated seven dogs and five cats from his Columbus Countryside Veterinary Clinic and took them to his home.

Gerber was one of the first to see the fire Monday night. He was working in the dog park behind his clinic, which also runs behind the chemical plant.

He determined that all animals at the clinic had to be moved, and he said time was critical.

"I noticed some smoke that was coming from one corner, so I went over there and could see that smoke was coming from Columbus Chemical. I immediately called 911," Gerber said.


Gerber said he watched as the blaze grew out of control.

"We started hearing explosions as things got progressively worse and started to escalate. We realized we needed to evacuate the animals," Gerber said.

Most of the animals went to his home, but several were moved to the Wyllow Pet Hospital in Beaver Dam.

"We did have some animals that needed medical attention, so I called up Dr. Smith and asked if we could use her facility. She very graciously said, 'Bring them on up,'" Gerber said.

"We have talked in the past about what would happen if we needed to transport our patients or evacuate our premises. I didn't expect that we would have to implement the plan," said Dr. Vicky Smith, of the Wyllow Pet Hospital.

Gerber said an elderly pug was one of the pets that needed immediate care.

"The timing was crucial. We needed to do the surgery today," Gerber said.

Gerber said the situation might not have been ideal, but cooperation between the clinics made for as smooth of a transition as he could have hoped for in an emergency.

"(The dog) is doing fine. He's in recovery," said Gerber.

Gerber, like others in the area, was finally allowed back into the clinic Tuesday afternoon.

He said both he and the dogs staying in kennels in his garage are happy to be out of his garage and back into the clinic. He said it was getting a bit noisy in his garage.