The Hawkins County Rescue Squad was formed in 2019 in order to respond quickly and effectively to emergency situations that require rope rescue in Tennessee’s Hawkins and Hancock Counties.
Anyone involved in a public safety agency in either of those counties is welcome to join the group, which currently features members from Hancock County Rescue Squad, Goshen Valley Volunteer Fire Department and Mount Carmel Fire Department, according to the group’s website.
While most of their rescue efforts are focused on people, they recently rescued a dog who’d gotten himself into quite the predicament after falling into a difficult-to-access sinkhole.
“On June 25, 2022, at approximately 2:00 PM, our Multi-Jurisdictional Rope Rescue Team was requested to assist with a dog that had fallen into a deep sinkhole,” the Hawkins County Rescue Squad posted on Facebook.
“Team Representatives from Hawkins County Rescue Squad and Goshen Valley Volunteer Fire Department responded to the incident location on Horton Ford Road in Kyles Ford.”
The dog, whose name was ‘Killer,’ did not live up to his name and was overcome with gratitude when a team member finally made it the 30 feet down to rescue the dog.
Both the team member and Killer were pulled back up to the surface, where the dog was found to be uninjured and was reunited with his family.
In all, the rescue took around three hours from start to finish.
The squad posted photos of the daring rescue to their Facebook page, and many commented to commend the crew for being willing to work as hard as they did to save someone’s beloved pet.
“You guys are the best in Tennessee,” one person wrote. “This is so very cool. Thank god for people like you all.”
“So awesome!!” wrote another. “Thank you all so much for going above and beyond (and below) to help people and animals!!”
One person asked about the system they rigged to pull the dog out, as it was not clearly visible in the photos.
Co-Team Captain Tim Luttrell explained in the comments.
“I can say that the total system consisted of a mainline rigged off one tree using an RPM system and a separate belay system rigged off another tree,” he wrote. “A directional was established with a couple of pulleys at a high point on a tree close to the edge of the pit opening. For raising the rescuer and dog we used a 5:1 MA.”
Technical jargon aside, the family and pup are thankful for the assistance, and maybe Killer will be a little more aware of his surroundings in the future to avoid a repeat incident.
