Why is BART needed?
Bart’s story illustrates how first responders encounter animals during emergencies and desire to assist them. BART courses teach these individuals how to help our four-legged loved ones, while maintaining their own safety. The public wants and needs their animals to be respected and cared for in emergencies, as was seen following the Gulf Coast hurricanes of 2005. During recounts of the rescue efforts many emergency personnel spoke of not knowing how or what to do when caring for pets during this time of crisis. Many people chose to stay behind when their pets were not allowed to be evacuated and sadly some of those individuals lost their lives as a result. In response to this tragedy federal legislation entitled the Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act was introduced, and was signed into law in October 2006. The PETS Act requires local and state disaster plans to include provisions for household pets and service animals. The Minneapolis Fire Department embraced BART traini
