150 Dead Dogs Dumped near Clinch River

March 31st, 2005, 11:38 AM

Federal environmental and law enforcement officials could be called to visit Scott County Thursday to investigate the discovery of scores of dead dogs dumped near the banks of a minor tributary of the Clinch River.
An estimated 150 dogs and dog remains, most of which were contained inside red, blue and green medical waste bags and trash bags, were discovered by a road construction official with Glass Construction just after noon Thursday on Route 965 on the banks of Obeys Creek, according to information from the office of the Scott County Sheriff's Department and Scott County Emergency Services Coordinator Jeff Brickey.
The animals were dumped over an embankment at two separate sites, and none of the bags appeared to have entered the waterway, which flows into Copper Creek and eventually the Clinch River, according to the officials.
The dump site is located just a few miles from the Gate City corporate limits off Route 72 and from the county's landfill in the Midway community.
"The (construction worker) was there to evaluate the road condition, when he smelled a horrible odor,'' said SCSD Investigator Chris Holder. "When we got to the scene, you just could not believe the smell, and the amount of dogs down there was just unbelievable. I've never seen anything like it. It looks like a deliberate dumping.''
Brickey stated that officials from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, Department of Health and state hazardous waste personnel were called in to evaluate the conditions.
"It is a very strange situation. Some identification information that was on the bags and the animals at the scene were recovered, and the proper authorities are going to be following up on those aspects of the case,'' said Brickey.
"Some of the bags even contained toys. It appears that the animals had been euthanized, but it is still early in the investigation. There were a few small breed dogs, but most of them appear to be large breeds.''
A large sheep dog was visible looking over the bank from one area where the animals had been dumped.
Officials with the Virginia Department of Transportation closed the road at 2 p.m. to assist county officials with the cleanup.
County Administrator John Strutner and the sheriff's office anticipated officials with the Environmental Protection Agency and the FBI would become involved in the investigation.
Holder stated that FBI involvement could be an option due to the factors in the case.
"We are not sure if the dogs came from within the state or from outside Virginia,'' he said.
"You have a desolate road that is barely visible from (Route 72) where the dogs were dumped. I don't know why they chose that spot, but if they came from out of state, you could be looking at a situation where someone could face federal charges. These are serious charges we are talking about.''
Brickey stated that preliminary tests at the site indicate no damage to the waters of Obeys Creek, but the removal of the carcasses would have to be done within a 24-hour period due to forecasted rainfall for Thursday.
Strutner also noted that Scott County will be responsible for the costs associated with the cleanup, and that the animals will be transported to proper facilities chosen by the designated contracting firm that is hired to do the chore. He said the dogs would not be taken to the county landfill.
"Currently, the county budget has $5,000 in reserve in our emergency services appropriation, but we think the cost is going to exceed that,'' said Brickey.

March 31st, 2005, 12:16 PM

i wouldnt be surprised if someone associated with the local government had them dumped there so they could give a nice contract to have them hauled out to some relative or friend. thats how things work there. see the hire they made for assistant county administrator this week or any other dealing thats happened the past 30 years.