SEVIER COUNTY, Tenn. — Crews helped save a dog on Wednesday, pulling it out of a narrow cave shaft after it had spent around three days trapped with a bear nearby.
The Waldens Creek Volunteer Fire Department said a joint Sevier County Technical Rope Rescue Team was called out Tuesday morning to help rescue the dog. They said at around the same time last year, the same team was called out to save a hunting dog that had fallen into a deep cave on English Mountain.
This time the dog, named Charlie, was trapped around 40 feet down a narrow cave shaft. When the team arrived at the cave, located off Nuns Cove Road, they said firefighters descended into it to save Charlie. However, those firefighters rounded a corner and found a bear sleeping around five feet below the dog, deeper down the cave system, according to a release.
They said the bear was around 2 years old and was around 200 lbs. large. They said it looked dehydrated and hungry but was otherwise in good condition.
So, the team left the cave and set up trail cameras to monitor the cave exit. When they returned on Wednesday, the bear had left and crews were able to enter it with a rope system. They found Charlie and made a harness to pull the dog out. Once it was out of the cave, the volunteer fire department said it was reunited with its owner.
"We would like to thank and recognize the entire rescue team and people who worked together to make this happen. It was truly a team effort that required all these departments to make it a success," the volunteer fire department said online.
