Emergency response instructor and former cruelty investigator to head midwest region
Sacramento, CA (June 26, 2006) – United Animal Nations (UAN) is pleased to welcome Brett Huff, an emergency response instructor and former humane investigator from Belleview, Missouri, as the new Midwest Regional Director for its Emergency Animal Rescue Service (EARS).
As EARS Midwest Regional Director, a volunteer position, Huff will monitor disasters that may affect animals in Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska. He will assist agencies with their animal disaster planning; work with local authorities to set up temporary animal shelters; train new EARS volunteers; and network with law enforcement, emergency management and animal control agencies throughout the region.
Huff conducted animal rescues and led water rescue teams after Hurricane Katrina. He currently teaches a large animal rescue course as an instructor for the Kansas-based Emergency Equine Response Unit and is a captain of the Pilot Knob Fire Protection District. Previously, he was a statewide cruelty investigator with the St. Louis-based Humane Society of Missouri, where he successfully conducted investigations of animal abuse and neglect, maintaining a 100 percent prosecution rate of all prosecutable cases. Huff holds a Class A law enforcement certification and has worked as a deputy sheriff in Reynolds County and a narcotics officer for the Mineral Area Drug Task Force. He is a member of the National Animal Fighting Task Force and is certified in emergency response, equine abuse investigation, and pet first aid and CPR.
“After seeing how the animals left behind during Hurricane Katrina suffered, I knew I could use my professional skills to make positive improvements in disaster planning and preparedness,” Huff said. “I look forward to leading our team of EARS volunteers who have committed themselves to helping animals who cannot help themselves.”
“Brett’s background overseeing large-scale animal cruelty investigations and criminal seizures – often the kind of situations EARS responds to – will greatly strengthen our animal disaster response capabilities,” said EARS National Director Kay Mayfield. “Our EARS regional directors are all dedicated volunteers and compassionate animal lovers, and Brett is no exception.”
With more than 2,600 EARS volunteers in the United States and Canada, including eight regional directors, EARS can respond to natural or human-caused disasters that put animals at risk and overwhelm local animal care agencies. In the fall of 2005, 435 EARS volunteers from 40 states and Canada participated in UAN’s Hurricane Katrina relief effort, caring for more than 2,100 animals at six locations in three states.
About UAN: Now celebrating its 20th year, United Animal Nations is North America’s leading provider of emergency animal sheltering and disaster relief services and a key advocate for the critical needs of animals.
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