GALVESTON -- Like thousands of Galveston residents, 80-year-old Beverly Fulmer fled the island before Hurricane Ike hit last week.

She had tried desperately to coax her cat out of hiding, but was unable to do so before she had to evacuate.  Instead she left Sasha behind in her apartment, thinking she wouldn’t be gone more than a few days.

As of Tuesday, the cat had been trapped in her apartment for over a week.  Fulmer was desperate to find someone to save her pet. 

She started by calling 11 News.  We happened to be at Galveston’s old police station which has become a clearing house for animals abandoned in the storm.

Kurt Cruickshank took care of Fulmer’s request.  

Cruickshank was one of the dozens of volunteers from around the country who’ve rescued move than a thousand animals on the island since Hurricane Ike hit.

He is retired police officer from South Dakota with a soft spot for animals.

“They’re innocent, and a lot of times they get caught up in situations that they have no control over,” said Cruickshank.

Within minutes of the call, the team broke into Fulmer’s apartment and rescued her cat, who was hiding under a chair.  The cat was safe.

“I thank you from the bottom of my heart. God loves you and so do I,” said Fulmer.

Sasha has been taken to the SPCA in Houston where Fulmer can pick her up once she returns to the island.