Community helps out Lancaster animal charity after fire breaks out at centre

The fire at Animal Care in Blea Tarn Road on Friday afternoon left the rehoming unit without power and heating.

Fortunately, no animals were harmed in the blaze, which broke out at around 2.45pm.

Fire crews were at the facility for four hours making sure the area was safe.

And local residents quickly rallied round to donate blankets and duvets to help keep the animals warm in the cold weather while power was being restored.

Others also offered to temporarily rehouse animals while the centre was cleaned up.

Animal Care provides a temporary home for unwanted dogs, cats, rabbits and guinea pigs, and rehomes more than 800 animals every year.

"Unfortunately today there was a small fire at Animal Care," the charity said on their Facebook page.

"All the animals are safe but we do not have any power on site. We don’t know when it will be fixed. Phones/computers may not be working [on Sunday] so please bear with us.

"We would like to thank the fire service for their fast response and all the staff and volunteers who rushed to get our dogs to safety.

"No power means no heating so if anyone has any spare blankets to help keep our dogs warm we would be very grateful."

The charity later posted: "We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has donated blankets over the weekend to help keep our animals nice and warm.

"We are so grateful for the support we have received and the messages from everyone.

"We now have enough blankets to keep everyone warm and a generator that is keeping us up and running until we can fix the problem and start replacing things.

"We are as always so so thankful for the amazing support the public give to us."

Animal Care is a registered charity which has been helping animals since 1978.

The shelter takes in abandoned and unwanted animals from all over the north west and rehomes more than 800 animals every year.