Northern Arizona nonprofit needs car engine help to keep saving lives

FLAGSTAFF, AZ (AZFamily) — Law enforcement uses search and rescue teams to reach hard-to-reach areas in the wilderness. Usually, they look for people, but one nonprofit in Arizona’s High Country uses off-road vehicles and drones to reunite lost pets with their owners.

Wings of Help is a search and rescue organization that helps find people and animals. They rely on their vehicle to travel to remote locations across Arizona. However, on their latest mission, the car’s engine broke, and rescues have been put on hold.

Eric Neitzel is a former wildland firefighter turned rescuer. He created Wings of Help to help people and animals because he knows the pain of losing a pet.

“When I was a kid, going way back, I lost my Husky,” Neitzel said. “So he took off, and he was gone for two days. I think if I had a drone back then, I would have been able to find him right away.”

So now, he does that: He uses drones to find people and partners with local animal shelters to find missing pets.

“In one case, two years ago, we had a dog missing, a Husky,” Neitzel said. “He’s finally captured after three blizzards and two months out in the middle of nowhere, so it is emotional.”

The backbone of his operation is his Chevy Tahoe, which carries all the drones and equipment.

“It’s four-wheel drive, and it’s a former Homeland Security rig with the Border Patrol,” Neitzel said. “So it’s all beefed up for heavy suspension. So we can pretty much go almost anywhere.”

During a search out by Mormon Lake south of Flagstaff, their engine died, pausing all search and rescue operations. Neitzel said they’ve already had to turn down two rescues.

“It’s heartbreaking,” he said. “I hate saying no, I don’t have a good ‘no’ muscle, and I don’t want one.” Neitzel said they created a fundraiser because they need $6,500 to replace the engine and restart search and rescue operations. “We do whatever it takes to get out there..”

You can find their donation link here
https://www.zeffy.com/fundraising/support-our-mission-vehicle-help-fund-a-replacement-engine