In the quiet pre-dawn hours a few days ago, when most Bhubaneswar residents were still in deep slumber, the piercing siren of a fire tender broke the silence. The emergency? A cat trapped in an abandoned well in Nayapalli.It wasn’t a typical fire emergency. However, for the Odisha Fire & Emergency Service (OFES), every life, human or animal, is precious, in line with the state govt’s zero-casualty mission during any disaster or crisis. The successful rescue, which saw the cat emerge unharmed, is just one of thousands of animal rescues undertaken by OFES in recent years.According to official data, the department has saved about 69,980 stray animals and birds from various crisis situations in the past five years. The bulk of them, including cattle and dogs, were rescued from drains and manholes.During the same period, human rescues totalled 44,120. Official data also shows that between 2020 and 2025, 6,545 human fatalities and 10,426 animal deaths were recorded due to fires and other calamities.“What’s particularly noteworthy is that animal rescues have surpassed human rescues. This reflects not just the department’s efficiency but also growing public awareness of animal welfare,” said Abhimanyu Swain, a Bhubaneswar-based veterinarian and animal welfare activist.DG (fire service) Sudhanshu Sarangi said officials have gone beyond their core duty of firefighting. “Every distress call matters to us, whether for a human or an animal. The joy we feel after each successful rescue is immeasurable. That cat in Nayapalli could have perished without immediate intervention, but today it’s back on its feet thanks to our team’s prompt response,” Sarangi added.Animal rescue has shown a steady rise: 9,572 in 2020; 10,174 in 2021; 13,373 in 2022; 13,813 in 2023 and 14,576 in 2024. In just the first half of 2025, OFES has already carried out 8,469 operations.The Covid-19 pandemic proved to be a turning point. With streets deserted, stray animals faced unprecedented challenges.“During the pandemic, we saw many cases of animals trapped in unusual places — construction sites, drainage systems and abandoned buildings. Our teams underwent specialised training to handle different species and situations. Today, they are better equipped than ever to respond to animal emergencies,” said DIG (fire service) Uma Shankar Dash.However, challenges remain. “Urban development often leads to animals getting trapped in construction sites or falling into uncovered manholes and drains. We will request civic authorities to address these issues,” said a fire department official.OFES is now focusing on prevention alongside rescue. Plans are underway to introduce specialised animal ambulances, set up a dedicated rescue training centre and strengthen emergency reporting and response times. Awareness programmes in schools and communities on animal safety are also in the pipeline.The state govt has pledged to bolster the wing with modern equipment and training. The Centre recently approved Rs 201.1 crore for expanding and modernising the service, while the state set aside Rs 394 crore for upgrades.“We want to introduce firefighting transformation programmes so our personnel can handle much more than just flames. They will choose their areas of specialisation from 13 domains,” Sarangi said.