By Laura French
WASHINGTON — A dog that was rescued from a car wreck led firefighters on a wild chase down a highway after escaping from a fire department vehicle.
Montgomery County Fire & Rescue reported that one of its vehicles was involved in a multi-vehicle crash while responding to a call about missing hikers on Friday, and that the little dog and his owner were in one of the other vehicles, according to WJLA.
The dog, named Astro, was placed in another fire department vehicle for safekeeping, but jumped out and ran off when someone opened the door.
Astro ran around the closed part of the highway and then through traffic, evading firefighters and other motorists who stopped and tried to help catch him.
Firefighters finally managed to grab him after he dashed off the road and into a wooded area nearby. The lucky pup escaped several close calls, at one point running under a moving vehicle. The entire chase was captured by ABC 7’s SkyTrak7 helicopter.
Astro’s owner, Liyah Young, was transported to the hospital with minor injuries after the crash, according to ABC 7. Astro, who Young said is an 18-month-old Shih Tzu-poodle mix, was checked out by a veterinarian, who said he hurt his paws from running so fast on the hot pavement during the incident.
The missing hikers from the initial call were located and treated for dehydration and heat stress.
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