The Windsor Green condominium fire in Carolina Forest left more than 200 people homeless on March 16, and while there was miraculously no loss of human life, many pets didn’t fare as well. Social media, namely Facebook, played a significant role in helping pets and their owners in the aftermath. But Facebook doesn’t operate in a vacuum—people are required to disseminate information accurately, quickly and with compassion.

Within hours of the fire, news spread, and one woman, Amy Wingard, tirelessly managed the Facebook page of the Grand Strand Humane Society, posting and re-posting photos of lost and found animals. Together Wingard, the humane society, the VCA Palmetto Animal Hospital and countless other volunteers did their part to help those Windsor Green residents who’d just lost their homes and, in many cases, their beloved pets.

“Just after the fire broke out we got our first Facebook message posting,” said Wingard, who is part-time self-employed event planner at Palm & Crescent Events. “And then came pictures of animals and their owners who were looking for them. It was heartbreaking.”

Wingard, who has been volunteering for the humane society since 2011, has put her training and skills as a 20-year New York City-based event planner to work. She helped with several events, and then came work with the Facebook page. When the Windsor Green fire went viral on Facebook, Wingard’s supervision of the page made a real difference.

No one has hard numbers on how many pets perished or how many were reunited with their owners, but there are many individual stories of tearful reunions, which was the ultimate reward to those involved in the rescue effort.
“One story stuck with me,” said Wingard, “and it’s absolutely incredible. There was a family that had three cats—all three were out there, lost. They sent us pictures, and of course we posted them. Within a few hours one had been found. And then the next day another was found with second- and third-degree burns. And then a few days later the third was found. The VCA Palmetto Animal Hospital took care of them, treated them.”

Eventually those three cats were reunited with their owner, but many pets are still missing. “Not everyone contacted us,” said Wingard, “but there are still owners looking, and we’ll continue to try and reunite them.”