Salem Animal Shelter Makes 'Urgent Call' Amid Water Main Break

UPDATED 4:45 p.m.

SALEM, MA — The Northeast Animal Shelter of Salem made an "urgent call" to North Shore residents on Wednesday for fresh water as it sought to maintain operations amid a water main break on Highland Avenue.

An MSPCA-Angell Northeast Animal Shelter spokesperson told Patch the shelter was in need of water for animals at the shelter to drink, as well as for clinic veterinarians and technicians to scrub in for surgeries.

The spokesperson said the shelter was planning to stay open during repairs, with operations remaining as normal as possible, though restrooms were not operational.

"We were able to get water locally to make that work at least temporarily, but if the outage continues for a long time, we may need to discuss moving animals to other shelters and seeking emergency fosters," the spokesperson said.

UPDATE: The spokesperson told Patch at about 4:45 p.m. that water was flowing again, although discolored. She said they were no longer in urgent need of the donations and would be able to maintain operations through the end of the day, but thanked those who contributed during the afternoon.