ARLINGTON, Va. – Dozens of rescue dogs and cats from communities devastated by Hurricane Helene are arriving in northern Virginia to find forever homes here.  It’s just one of the many ways people around here are reaching out and helping people and pets in need.  

This is one of the nearly two dozen cats and dogs brought here to Falls Church from Richmond over the past 24 hours. They were rescued from humane societies in parts of North Carolina devastated by Hurricane Helene.

More than 100 dogs and cats were trucked from North Carolina to Richmond on Monday.  Then more pets arrived from Lee and Smyth counties in southwest Virginia Wednesday afternoon. 

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They’ve been taken in by several animal rescue organizations across the Commonwealth.  

Nearly two dozen cats came to the Lost Dog & Cat Rescue Foundation from Tennessee on Sunday.  

“We’ll, as we’re doing today, start to go through their records, start to determine what care they need. Many will need to be spayed or neutered. Upper respiratory infections — we can expect in a lot of them just because of the conditions and how stressful the transport can be, so having that identified and being able to get them the medical care that they’ll need right away,” said Dawn Wallace, executive director of the shelter.

All of these animals will eventually be available for adoption, brought here to make room in those shelters for people’s pets who have been displaced by Helene.

“Our volunteers are here today at our Rescue Care Center in Falls Church and they’ll start being able to walk the dogs spend time with them, give them the TLC that they deserve after a long journey. The cats and kittens will get cuddled and snuggled and lots of playtime,” Wallace said. “And we will start to determine how quickly we can get them all ready for adoption.”

Lost Dog and Cat Rescue Foundation has been doing this for 22 years, finding forever homes for more than 45,000 animals. The cats and dogs arriving now will likely be available for adoption next weekend. 

If you’re interested in adopting one of these furry friends, click here.

President Joe Biden has declared a major disaster in the Commonwealth of Virginia following the devastating and broad impacts brought on by Helene.

Biden has ordered that federal aid be used to supplement statewide and local recovery efforts in affected areas. This move will make federal funding available to affected individuals in the counties of Giles, Grayson, Smyth, Tazewell, Washington and Wythe and the independent City of Galax.

Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses, and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster.

In addition to this, federal funding will also be available to state and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations for emergency work in the following localities:

• Bedford County

• Bland County

• Buchanan County

• Carroll County

• Craig County

• Dickenson County

• Giles County

• Grayson County

• Montgomery County

• Pittsylvania County

• Pulaski County

• Russell County

• Scott County

• Smyth County

• Tazewell County

• Washington County

• Wise County

• Wythe County

• Bristol

• Covington

• Danville

• Galax

• Norton

• Radford

Residents and business owners who sustained losses in the designated areas can begin applying for assistance at www.DisasterAssistance.gov, or by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362), or by using the FEMA App. Anyone using a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, can give FEMA the number for that service.

Playing in a hard fought game against Clemson that saw the Stanford Cardinal (2-2, 1-1 ACC) fly home with the 40-14 loss, a couple players will go into this week against Virginia Tech with uncertain statuses as quarterback Ashton Daniels and defensive back Jay Green went down in the game with injuries.

Green, who has been playing nickel cornerback since joining the Cardinal, suffered a lower body injury in the first quarter of the loss and is questionable this week against Virginia Tech, with head coach Troy Taylor saying during media availability that while the team is hopeful that Green can play, they are also preparing for the possibility of him being out, and are confident in who they have to fill the void.

“We’ve got a number of guys that can do it,” Taylor said. “Aaron Morris is a young man that has started to play a lot of football and has done a good job and then we’ve got some younger freshmen that can also contribute. And then Collin Wright always has the ability to play nickel, which he did on Saturday night. He played nickel most of the evening after Jay went out.”

As for Daniels, the injury that he sustained in the fourth quarter was to his lower body and while officially listed as day-to-day, he will have a chance to be available to start this week against the Hokies. However, if he is unable to play, it will be Justin Lamson who will get the call to start with Myles Jackson and Charlie Mirer as the next ones in line.

“He’s got a chance to play,” Taylor said of Daniels’ status. “It’ll be just how much he improves throughout the week, but there’s a definite chance he can play.”

If Lamson does start, Taylor mentioned that he does not expect a big change to the game plan, as Lamson’s experience with the scheme and the first team offense will have him ready to go if need be.

“He gets half the reps in practice each day,” Taylor said. “So, we’ve got a lot of confidence in him, he knows the system well so it will not affect play calling at all.”

The Cardinal have also confirmed that wide receiver Mudia Reuben, who was poised for a big junior season, is done for the year after getting injured during the Syracuse game and is now eligible for a medical redshirt.

“I haven’t had a chance to talk to him about that,” Taylor said. “Obviously, he was really coming along as a player, he definitely has that option. He wants to get through the surgery and all that but, he’s got a big upside and he’s an awesome, awesome guy so if that’s something he wants to do, then I’m in full support of that.”

While Stanford awaits the status of Green and Daniels, it will also begin getting locked in and focused on preparations for a big game this week, where the team will return home for the first time in three weeks to take on the Virginia Tech Hokies. Kickoff for the game will be at 12:30 p.m. (PT) and will be broadcast live on the ACC Network.