Good dogs survive Ketchikan landslide

A week after the Ketchikan landslide that killed city employee Sean Griffin and injured three others, state geologist Travis Watkins heard whimpering in the wreckage of a house that had been pushed 47 feet.

James Montiver was able to escape the building after the terrifying slide, but Bill Montiver was trapped and had to be rescued.

Their dogs, Alani and Cassie, disappeared, according to Ketchikan officials. The Montivers feared the dogs were gone.

After the report from Watkins about the whimpering sounds from the building, the Ketchikan Fire Department found a way to get into the structure through a narrow passageway and searched for the source of the sound.

“I was elated when I saw the dog’s eye shining back at me,” said firefighter/EMT Crystal Schleiff.

The dogs and their owners are doing well.