TV star William McNamara has done his part to ensure the four-legged victims of the Pacific Palisades fire are safe.
The 59-year-old actor has been on the scene with people from the Animal Advocacy Network and Viva Global Rescue, sharing videos of their efforts on social media as they search for animal survivors of the deadly flames.
In a recent interview with TMZthe journeyman actor, who has appeared on shows like NYPD Blue and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, explained why he and the others went on rescue missions themselves instead of calling 911 for help.
“You don’t want to be a burden,” he said of taking resources away from those who might need them.
The Out Of Hand actor is an old hand at caring for animals, revealing he helped save countless animals during the 2018 Woolsey fire in Malibu, including Grammy winner Diane Warren’s pigs.
“The guys and gals who are real heroes here are a guy named AC, Aaron Christiansen, and he’s from the Animal Advocacy Network,” said McNamara, who shared a video of a cat rescue mission on Instagram on Friday.
TV star William McNamara has done his part to ensure the four-legged victims of the Pacific Palisades fire are safe
“He alone, with the two girls Maya and Kalli from Viva Global Rescue,… they have the horse trailers… have saved 313 animals since Wednesday,” he said.
The Amber Road actor explained that farms have emerged from the fire zone to provide shelter for the large animals.
‘People immediately came to help.’
Among them were the Santa Monica Police Department’s equestrian officers, who, after rescuing their horses from where they were housed in Agoura Hills, “sent their trailers back to assist.”
“Everyone is participating,” McNamara said. “You’d be amazed.”
“The animal community… they are the best people on planet Earth and they will do it.”
It’s been an exhausting time for the rescuers who have essentially been on call since the fire broke out.
‘No one slept. I haven’t gone to bed yet,” the American Desert star explained, adding that his face was burned by the flames and his eyes and throat were irritated from exposure to the flames and smoke.
McNamara told TMZ that he has been working with Kalli and Maya of Viva Global Rescue, a horse rescue operation, and Aaron “AC” Christiansen of the Animal Advocacy Network to get animals out of harm’s way, crediting their group with saving more than 300 animals to save.
It’s been an exhausting time for the rescuers who have essentially been on call since the fire broke out. ‘No one slept. I haven’t gone to bed yet,” the American Desert star explained
Since Tuesday, the deadly Palisades Fire has burned more than 50,000 acres of land and destroyed thousands of homes and structures
The raging fire is 8% under control on Friday
“We always look out for each other and it’s a great community.” he said.
“In times of need and emergencies, we truly come together.”
McNamara has faced a number of challenges in the animal protection field, including being arrested in Japan while working for Sea Shepherd.
The Vegas Movie Awards winner said he had never seen anything like the most recent fires and called them “apocalyptic.”