Dark waters swirl
From Ayutaya to Bangkok.
Weary animals wade, swim
And search for dry spots.
Pups are rescued from chest-deep waters at one of many flooded temples in Bangkok.
© Kinship Circle, Thailand 2011-2012
Marooned
KC-DARTGeorge McKeehan, Lexie Cataldo, Blaine Whealy, Tim Gorski
LocationBangkok, Thailand Nov 4-7 2011
Field LogGeorge McKeehan, Kinship Circle IC
HOWLING FROM A PATCH OF DRY LANDThe water span dwarfs Bangkok by 10 to 20 times. Satellite maps show a dark mass from Ayutaya to Bangkok, a city of millions. One district pumps out floodwaters. Another fills. A levee opens. Water spills into streets, homes and businesses somewhere else. Some say the sewage-filled waters won't recede for months. One newspaper said it would take Noah's Ark to save them all. Dogs bark from sloped rooftops, 10, 15 or more uneasily balanced together. They wait on porches that poke out of the water. The last dry place. Others are submerged chest deep. When finally pulled out, pus-filled lesions line their bellies and legs. The skin rots, if underwater too long. Animals are seen in phone booths surrounded by water. But the saddest portrait, says Tim Gorski — a Kinship Circle disaster responder and documentary filmmaker in Thailand when floods escalated — are those who paddle toward any surface taller than a meter and half. They cling to tiny islands and howl through the night. Marooned without food or non-toxic water.
Danai and his wife donated their industrial site to shelter animals rescued from the flood.
Save Elephant Foundation founder and director, Lek Chailert
© Kinship Circle, Thailand 2011-2012
Darrick Thomson (standing) meets with George McKeehan, Blaine Whealy and Tim Gorski (Kinship Circle) for search-rescue. Darrick and wife Lek Chailert, of Save Elephant Foundation, lead relief efforts.
© Kinship Circle, Thailand / Lexie Cataldo
Refuge Begins
Work days endure past midnight. It is long dark when Kinship's George McKeehan, Lexie Cataldo, and Blaine Whealy take in some 40 rescues at the shelter. Three SEF volunteers have cared for animals over the last three days. Fencing is cardboard panes, bamboo poles and wooden stakes. Some dogs have outsmarted the makeshift fence with a few stategic leaps. Dogs far outnumber cats at present, with just a few kittens who are sheltered elsewhere. They are all shapes, breeds, sizes. From young to old. Health problems range from worms and puncture wounds to a missing eye and skeletal injuries. With firemen George (a Lieutenant) and Blaine on hand, Kinship Circle's team dives into construction, including fence reinforcement. They use plywood panels to rebuild a perimeter fence and develop a plan for intake, bathing, and clinic areas. With two SEF staff overnighting at the shelter, workdays end after 2:00 a.m.
Kinship Circle works with Save Elephant Foundation, SCAD Foundation (Street Cats & Dogs Of Bangkok), Soi Dog Foundation, Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand, plus more Thai and int'l organizations united for animal relief in Thailand's historic floods. TWP Coalition/Thailand Animal Flood Aid conducts emergency sheltering, field and water rescue, food drops, veterinary aid.
INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX DOUBLES AS FLOOD SHELTERFlooding slows traffic during the morning drive to the disaster shelter. A normally 1.5 hour drive lasts 3 hours, but Kinship Circle's George McKeehan, Blaine Whealy, Lexie Cataldo and Tim Gorski finally arrive at the Bang Pu industrial site, a warehouse, office and grounds on loan as a temp shelter for animals rescued from floods. Abby, an Australian volunteer with Save Elephant Foundation, is there alone. The animals are content under Abby's watchful eye, but she needs more food. As Kinship Circle's first team in Thailand, arriving just days after this site was secured, a top priority is to further shelter capabilities and increase functionality. At this early stage, the shelter has no structure. The team constructs temporary pens, runs and cages, plus walk, bathe, feed, medicate and clean up all the dogs. This start-up phase demands all their time for the next three days. In fact, George and Blaine camp out on shelter floors each night. Over several days, a reception area is established with sign-in for donations and volunteers, who are directed to walk and bathe dogs.
