More than 20 cats were killed when fire raced through the Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando facility late Wednesday night. 20 cats were able to be rescued and all 26 dogs in the shelter were able to get out.
"If you run a shelter this is literally your worst nightmare. To see your building on fire and know that there are animals in there that you're charged to care for and you can't go in."
A heartbroken Pet Alliance executive director Stephen Bardy says some of the dogs and cats are being transferred to the Alliance's other facility in Sanford.
The fire is believed to have broken out by the room that houses the cats and gutted about 20 percent of the building with flames shooting through the roof. The cause of the blaze is under investigation.
Members of the Alliance had just returned from Louisiana and Mississippi where they picked up 260 dogs and cats from flooded shelters in the wake of Hurricane Ida.
Image courtesy Getty