A television reporter interrupted a live broadcast from Hurricane Florence floodwaters to help rescue a dog.
Julie Wilson, an anchor for ABC affiliate WTVD, was broadcasting on Facebook Live on Sept. 15, from New Bern, North Carolina, when she jumped in to help rescue a Rottweiler.
“This community’s really pulling together,” Wilson said, as she walked alongside a woman wearing a pink hoodie who said her name was Tasha.
“Here in New Bern, North Carolina, where the rain’s really coming down, and the streets are flooded,” said Wilson.
“Do you think that is safe,” Wilson asked Tasha, who said that she was trying to bring the dog to safety.
“It’s my daughter’s therapy dog. I have no choice,” Tasha responded.
After Tasha entered the house to get the dog, Wilson announced “I’m on Facebook Live right now” and panned with her camera to reveal a dog standing in the doorway of a house looking out at the floodwater.
“The lady’s rescuing her therapy dog for a child, it’s the child’s seventeenth birthday,” said Wilson.
“Alright, here we go, she’s got the dog,” Wilson said as Tasha began to lead the Rottweiler through the water.
When Tasha began to have difficulty maneuvering the animal through the water, Wilson picked up the dog and asked Tasha to hold the camera.
“You are OK baby girl,” Wilson said while carrying the dog to safety. “Nobody is leaving the dog in this mess. That’s what we are doing out here.”
As Tasha and her dog began to walk in shallower waters, Wilson resumed her commentary.
“They are trying to get out folks. They are doing their best,” Wilson said before continuing her live stream.
In New Bern, population 29,000, flooding on the Neuse River left 500 people in peril.
Swift-water rescue teams had saved more than 360 people in New Bern by midafternoon Friday, and another 140 were still waiting for help, a city spokeswoman said.
“WE ARE COMING TO GET YOU,” the city tweeted during the height of the storm. “You may need to move up to the second story, or to your attic, but WE ARE COMING TO GET YOU.”
The city was placed under mandatory evacuation orders prior to the storm, but many there and elsewhere chose to ignore the order.
