While thousands of people were preparing to escape a devastating hurricane, one man was travelling in the opposite direction with an extraordinary mission in mind.

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Armed with an old school bus and a determination to save as many animals as possible, Tony Alsup set out to rescue dozens of shelter pets who were at risk of being left behind.

As Hurricane Florence approached South Carolina in September 2018, residents were being urged to evacuate ahead of the dangerous storm.

But Alsup, who travelled from Tennessee, knew that not everyone would have the opportunity to escape.

In particular, animal shelters were facing the difficult task of finding somewhere safe for the dogs and cats in their care.

Rather than simply hoping someone would help, Alsup decided to do something about it himself.

The animal lover had previously purchased an old school bus specifically to transport vulnerable pets during emergencies.

And this wasn’t his first rescue mission.

As a volunteer with EARS Emergency Animal Rescue and Shelter, Alsup had already used the vehicle to evacuate animals from Texas ahead of Hurricane Harvey in 2017.

When he learned that shelters in South Carolina were facing a similar situation, he wasted little time putting his bus back to work.

Speaking to The Washington Post, Alsup explained why he felt compelled to help.

“I’m like, look, these are lives too,” Alsup said. “Animals — especially shelter pets — they always have to take the back seat of the bus. But I’ll give them their own bus. If I have to I’ll pay for all the fuel, or even a boat, to get these dogs out of there.”

Before Hurricane Florence arrived, Alsup visited several animal shelters across South Carolina, collecting dogs and cats that needed somewhere safe to go.

By the time his rescue operation was complete, the bus was carrying an incredible 64 animals, including 53 dogs and 11 cats.

The pets were then transported to a rescue facility in Foley, Alabama, away from the approaching storm.

From there, arrangements were made for the animals to be transferred to shelters across the country, with the hope that they would eventually find permanent homes.

Hurricane Florence would go on to claim at least 23 lives, highlighting just how serious the situation had become.

But for the animals aboard Alsup’s bus, the outcome was very different.

His efforts were particularly appreciated by Saint Frances Animal Center in Georgetown, South Carolina, which revealed that he had helped some of its most overlooked animals.

“Tony swooped in at 4 a.m. Wednesday morning to pick up our ‘leftovers’ — the dogs with blocky heads, the ones with heartworm. The ones no one else will ever take. And he got them to safety,” the shelter wrote online. “Not the most conventional evacuation, but surely the one with the most heart.”

For 64 vulnerable animals, an ordinary school bus became an unlikely lifeline.

And thanks to one man’s determination, pets that might otherwise have remained in danger were given the chance of a safer future.

Featured image credit: Tony Alsup / Facebook