A dozen cats are missing after New Westminster apartment fire that displaced roughly 100 residents

Michael Poetker's cat Honey is one of 12 cats still missing after a fire over the weekend.

A dozen cats are missing after New Westminster apartment fire that displaced roughly 100 residents 'If a cat is hiding in fear somewhere after a fire, they'll typically stay close by,' veterinarian says When Michael Poetker's stepdaughter called him numerous times in a panic about a fire that had broken out in their apartment building on Friday, he raced to meet her there. Firefighters were already working at Poetker's New Westminster apartment, Pinecrest Manor, when he arrived. When he learned his neighbour's two cats were still trapped inside, he didn't hesitate; Poetker, who has three cats himself, ran upstairs with the landlord and entered his neighbour's unit.

"When I got in that apartment there was so much smoke. There was no doing anything. You couldn’t see.

You couldn’t breathe." Poetker then began searching his unit for his own cats. A firefighter told him to exit through the window while they retrieved the animals.

The firefighter handed Poetker two of his cats through the window, but when he passed the third, Honey, she clawed free. "As soon as Honey got out, she ran. She bolted away."

Honey is one of 12 cats currently reported missing following the Pinecrest Manor fire over the weekend, according to the Scent Rescue Team, a group assisting residents with the search. "She’s outside somewhere. I’m hoping she’s alive, but who knows?" said Poetker.

Poetker’s stepdaughter found Honey two years ago. The cat was taped inside a box and left in a garbage can before Poetker adopted her. "That poor cat’s been [through] nothing but trauma her whole life."

Cat search efforts A Facebook group called New West Cool Cats has seen dozens of posts about missing cats since the July 10 fire displaced roughly 100 residents at Pinecrest Manor. Its members are tagging concerned residents and trying to locate missing cats. Posts describe the moment one cat came running out of the building "soaking wet and covered with soot."

"There was a white cat that was taken out and it made a run for it once things were getting torn down on the side where the fire actually happened," said Stephanie Tolea, founder of the Scent Rescue Team. "A good Samaritan was able to secure the cat. The cat had a permanent ID, was brought to the New Westminster animal shelter and was reunited with the owner."

Tolea said that is the only reunion the team is aware of so far. On Tuesday night, the Scent Rescue Team is bringing in its tracking dog, Ellie, to advance the search. Tolea has been training five-year-old Ellie to track missing animals since the dog was 12 weeks old.

Ellie's job is to search the area surrounding Pinecrest Manor using scent articles, like cat toys, collected from some of the missing cats, Tolea said. She hopes to receive permission to search the building property and debris. Tracking dogs are especially helpful in situations like this, Tolea said, because a scared cat will often become immobilized in hiding.

"Cats could be under the rubble. A lot of cats, when they are scared, they won’t make a noise. They won’t come out of hiding," said Tolea.

Vancouver-based veterinarian, Emilia Wong Gordon, explained that behaviour comes from cats' prey instincts. "They're afraid of loud sounds and the smell of smoke obviously is terrifying for animals as well," she said. "If a cat is hiding in fear somewhere after a fire, they'll typically stay close by. "

Gordon said the best time of day to look for lost cats is during dawn and dusk, and someone with a familiar voice should be there to call for the cat. Tolea pointed to a search she conducted following another apartment fire in December last year, where a cat stayed hidden in a unit for roughly two weeks. It wasn’t until the team received permission to search the unit that the cat was found.

Between community members, the Scent Rescue Team and other groups assisting with the search, including the Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association and Pets Reunite, Tolea is confident they will find cats that may have escaped the fire. Poetker said Honey is well known by his neighbours, and the support he has received from the community has been remarkable. "They’ve been texting me at night saying, ‘We’re walking around the building looking for Honey,’" he said.

"These people have gone above and beyond in every way possible."