Deaf puppy rescued from fifty-foot deep hole in Alabama
Crews successfully pull the small dog to safety, must to the relief of her worried owners.
Toffee, a 7-week-old puppy, fell into a 50-foot-deep crevice behind an Huntsville, Ala., home on Thursday. But just after midnight Friday -- roughly 30 hours after rescue attempts first began -- she was rescued.
The pup, who happens to be deaf, fell down the inches-wide space late Thursday afternoon. Firefighters, cave rescue crews and plumbers all joined forces in the rescue effort, lowering nets, snares and food to try to retrieve Toffee, as it was too narrow a space for a person to enter.
Finally, the moment came. Volunteers erupted in cheers when Toffee was pulled out of the hole.
“This is a miracle,” Karen Smith, the puppy’s foster mother, told reporters at the scene.
The story quickly made national news -- Huntsville television stations drew thousands of followers as they live-streamed the recovery efforts.
“You all are heroes,” one Facebook user wote on a local new station's live stream of the event.
“Thanks for not giving up!” another person commented.
Video footage shows Toffee wagging her tail as Smith holds the rescued pooch.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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