Rutherford County, TN—Rutherford County Fire Rescue crews saved two small dogs stuck in a sinkhole on Yeargan Road around noon on Saturday.

The sinkhole was around eight feet deep with a 16’ opening. The dogs were in 12 inches of water where the hole opened below the surface.

Firefighters were able to pull one of the dogs up and out using a rope snare, allowing the owners to immediately begin warming it up. The second dog was not able to be rescued this way, so firefighters had to do some quick thinking.

Crews widened the opening and were able to lower a firefighter of smaller build into the hole utilizing a harness on a rope and pulley system. The firefighter was able to retrieve the animal and hand it up out of the hole. The dog was reunited with family as well and sent into the house to warm up.

“Other than some cold wet dogs, there were no injuries,” said RCFR Captain Matthew Lupo. Lupo credits swift thinking and actions from Station 51 and Rescue 60 for a successful rescue!