The Atlantic’s most powerful hurricane, Irma, may be long gone, but the Humane Society of Greater Miami is still picking up the pieces left behind. The catastrophic storm may not have had its eye on Miami, but she most certainly left her mark on the Humane Society’s Soffer and Fine Adoption Center as the shelter suffers over $500,000 in losses and costs associated with downtime. Now, more than ever, the animal welfare organization calls to the community for help and support that will be imperative to restore the shelter and help them continue to care for the homeless dogs and cats in our community.
Hurricane Irma’s destruction began outside the Humane Society’s properties, including a property in Miami Gardens and a pet cemetery, where countless trees were uprooted and went flying across the area, along with so much debris. The parking lot of the Soffer and Fine Adoption Center also suffered destruction, knocking down trees all over the property, along with much of the power needed to run the facility. The organization suffered terrible damage to the chiller, leaving many rooms throughout the shelter unbearably hot for the animals. To make matters worse, there are several roof leaks throughout the building, including their clinic. The Humane Society’s staff has worked, and is still working diligently to make due with the extremely limited amount of functioning space to ensure every animal in their care has sufficient air conditioning given their current conditions. Pets living in the organization’s Audrey Love Intake and Quarantine Pavilion, which has no air conditioning or power, were quickly moved to the main shelter, along with the cats located on the second floor, after it too was left with no power or air conditioning. For the time being, they have implemented a temporary solution to provide a main source of AC to the animals in the shelter while they fix the much larger problem. As the Humane Society works hard at using every square inch of livable space to accommodate the needs of close to 400 dogs, cats, puppies and kittens, they send out an urgent plea to the community for support!
The Humane Society of Greater Miami is in desperate need of financial contributions to help them get back on their feet to give the animals the attention they need. With over half a million dollars in losses brought by Hurricane Irma, the animal welfare organization needs the donations and support from the community now more than ever! Please help during this difficult time. Every donation helps and is extremely appreciated.
To make a donation visit www.humanesocietymiami.org or deliver to the Humane Society of Greater Miami’s Soffer and Fine Adoption Center located at 16101 West Dixie Highway, North Miami Beach, FL 33160. For more information, please call Jossie Aguirre, Director of Marketing and Special Events, at 786-351-1244.
