Rescuers from the Big Dog Ranch Rescue couldn’t believe their eyes when they saw their drone’s infrared camera light up with a heat signature. Volunteers were scanning the debris-filled Marsh Harbour on Great Abaco Island nearly a month after the devastating category 5 hurricane Dorian blasted it with sustained 185 mph winds and 25+ foot storm surges.

The record-breaking hurricane claimed the lives of at least 70 people, with many more still missing, and completely destroyed the homes of over 75% of the population.

Hurricane Dorian also left hundreds of dead and injured dogs in its wake.

In October, long after search and rescue efforts had given way to the heartbreaking search for dead bodies, BDRR volunteer Sean Irion was out scanning for heat signatures for dogs of known owners. He didn’t think that he would find any alive, though.

“The thought that there were more animals alive a month after the storm? No way. We did not think it, we did not believe it, there was no way, no how,” explains BDRR president and founder Lauree Simmons in an interview with The Dodo.

As fate would have it though, there was one dog out there with an unbreakable will to survive.

When Irion’s drone picked up a heat signature in the shape of a dog, he knew he had to keep searching until he found it. Even if that meant struggling through the sea of debris left by the hurricane.

“I went out, on foot, walking around looking to see if I could find these animals. And I heard almost a whimper, whine. I wasn’t gonna give up until I found a dog,” says Irion.

When Irion did finally find the dog, he was trapped beneath the hurricane’s rubble.

Pinned beneath an air conditioner that was piled with sheet metal from a wind-obliterated roof, was a puppy. The 1-year-old mixed breed pup looked more like a living skeleton than a dog. The volunteer held out a can of wet food for the dog to lap at. He hoped that by giving him food, he would gain the pup’s trust, and he did.

“It’s a miracle this little dog had the will to live and to survive in the conditions he was in,” Simmons said.

It took some work, but eventually the dog, who has aptly been named Miracle, was pulled from the wreckage and Irion called in for help.

“Seeing this poor little darling dog just trapped underneath there and thinking about how hard he fought to stay alive … We had Miracle in our arms within two hours of him being rescued,” Simmon recalls in an interview with TODAY.

A full veterinary exam at the rescue revealed that the emaciated dog had developed anemia, and his muscles had wasted from going so long without movement. The vet suspected that the poor dog had lost over half his body weight while trapped in the debris.

Now that he’d been found, things were about to look up for Miracle.

The rescue helped Miracle regain an impressive 16 pounds in the weeks following his rescue by feeding him small portions of food every two hours at first. BDRR also provided him with physical therapy to help him regain his muscle mass as well.

The rescue has a 30-day policy allowing them to place a dog for adoption if an owner hasn’t stepped forward to claim the dog in that time. Sadly, though they had posted to social media and other outlets about Miracle, no one came to claim him.

Though no owner came forward, there was no shortage of people lining up to adopt him.

According to abcNews, over 10,000 people lined up to adopt him and in November last year, Miracle became an official member of the Beaty family.

Boy, is it a big family, too!

With three new big sisters and a mom and dad, it might just be safe to say that Miracle hit the post-apocalyptic-hurricane jackpot. Now, Miracle and his family, along with the Big Dog Ranch Rescue, are using his story to help raise awareness and money to help other dogs in situations like his.

“It’s hope for the people that have been through so much over there knowing that miracles do happen,” says Simmons.

To learn more about Miracle’s story, watch the video below and, if you’re feeling moved, consider making a donation to the Miracle Fund to help other dogs like him get the care they need and find their forever families.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

Source: The Dodo/abcNEWS/Big Dog Ranch Rescue/KETKnbc/Washington Post