Rest assured, there are still good people in this world. And they care about dogs, which honestly makes them even better. A group of people claim to have rescued the dogs that were trapped by lava flows from the La Palma volcanic eruption. There’s just one mystery: We have no idea who they are.
Authorities had approved a plan to do a drone airlift to transport the stranded dogs over the scalding lava. But late last month, a group calling itself “the A-Team” said it covertly set out to free the pups, leaving behind only a set of human footprints and a reassuring message.
The dogs had been trapped by lava flows after the Cumbre Vieja volcano began erupting in September (it’s still erupting, and volcanologists don’t know when it’ll stop). They reportedly belong to a 70-year-old hunter from the town of Todoque, who authorities forced to evacuate without the dogs, according to Spanish daily El País.
News about the rescue of the dogs, which had been stranded for about a month, was published by the group via a video on social media. The video opens with drone images of Todoque and the Spanish audio version of the opening from The A-Team, Mr0 T’s big break.
About 14 seconds into the video, a photo appears with a banner in Spanish that says, “Stay strong La Palma, the dogs are alright.” The banner is signed “the A-Team.” We all love a good rescue story, but the details beyond what the group posted have been in short supply. That includes the identities of these canine-loving heroes.
Finding out who is part of the so-called A-Team or how they got the dogs out likely won’t happen any time soon, primarily because they broke the law to do so. The area near where the dogs were trapped had been declared an “exclusion zone” and sealed off by Spanish authorities. Admitting they entered the zone, even if it was for a good cause, could open members of the dog rescue team up to fines or further punishment.
Days after it announced the rescue last month, the A-Team released another video to show that the dogs were alright and that they were being cared for and fed. The mysterious group then turned over the dogs to the government’s agency for animal rights, which said the canines were “in perfect health.”
Yet, even when handing over the dogs, the A-Team did not break their cover. The Spanish agency for animal rights said that members of the group called veterinarians and gave them a location, El País reported. Once officials got there, the animals were safe and sound.
“We have no idea how they carried out the rescue,” Sergio García, head of the animal rights agency, said.
García explained at the time that authorities were still trying to figure out what to do with the dogs. Given that they were in good health and that the majority had identification tags, the dogs would surely be able to return to their owners, he said.