Luzerne County

When a Disaster Strikes Who Will Protect and Care for Them

In today’s world, we all worry about the threat of a natural or man-made disaster. Animals are especially vulnerable when a disaster strikes because they must rely on us for help. In 1999, Hurricane Floyd claimed the lives of millions of animals in North Carolina and thousands more were separated from their owners. Many of these animals could have been saved by a coordinated response plan. From this tragedy, the State Animal Response Team (SART) concept was born. In 2004, Pennsylvania adopted this concept to address its animal-related disaster response needs.

About PASART

Any Animal, Any Disaster, Anywhere

The Pennsylvania State Animal Response Team(PASART) was created through a private-public partnership to serve as a unifying network of organizations, businesses, federal, state, county and local government agencies, and individuals that supports the prevention, preparedness, response and recovery for emergencies affecting animals. Because disaster response needs to happen at a local level, PASART builds County Animal Response Teams (CARTs) across the state. County coordinators are selected to lead the development of county teams consisting of volunteers who will respond to emergencies at the local level. Join your county’s animal response team at , or if one is not created yet, help us get a CART started in your county.

Goals of PASART

To facilitate a rapid, coordinated, and effective response to any emergency affecting animals;
To decrease the health and safety threat to humans and animals;
To minimize the economic impact of emergencies affecting animals; and
To prevent or decrease the spread of disease during emergencies affecting animals.