OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — On Saturday, an outdoor cat shelter housing 10 cats was set on fire. The Omaha Fire Department responded quickly and no cats were harmed, but the caretaker still has questions.
- In 2009, Sheryl Spain founded a rescue called Community Cats of Omaha.
- On Saturday, Spain says a nearby neighbor witnessed someone get out of this car and light the shelter on fire.
- "I would like to know why. Why? Somebody a week ago, Friday, came and bashed into all these houses with their car. To me it looks like the same car."
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
This shelter near 84th and Blondo for outdoor cats was set on fire on Saturday. The caretaker tells us all cats are safe and accounted for but the question she has still remains, why would somebody do this?
In 2009, Sheryl Spain founded a rescue called Community Cats of Omaha, once caring for around 50 cats here, now down to 10 because of its spay and neutering program.
"If we can keep their population down, they die out as they live their lives out and die out naturally, and that's what this is,” said Spain.
While she knows not everyone agrees with housing wild cats, she never imaged it would come to this.
"I just got a phone call of my mother saying your cats are on fire, your cats are on fire.”
On Saturday, Spain says a nearby neighbor witnessed someone get out of this car and light the shelter on fire.
The Omaha Fire Department arrived shortly after, stopping it. no cats were hurt.
"I would like to know why. Why? Somebody a week ago, Friday, came and bashed into all these houses with their car. To me it looks like the same car."
To keep the cats out of danger, Spain has decided to relocate them.
But she's now short on supplies and is reaching out to neighbors for help.
"I thought it was terrible that anyone would do this to innocent little kitties. I mean they're not doing anything to anybody,” said Hilary Pflug, who works in the area.
The response Spain has gotten so far has been more than she ever could've asked for with neighbors donating items like kitty litter, food and bedding to help the cats resettle.
"Oh my gosh, I opened my door today. There were 30 packages. So sweet,” said Spain.
The Omaha Fire Department says they are investigating.
If you'd like to help Community Cats of Omaha, you can find more information here.
