A volunteer rescuer discovered and released six caged dogs that had been left behind when their owners evacuated due to hurricane Florence.

The dogs were found in a Leland, North Carolina, property. Journalist Marcus DiPaola tweeted a video of the rescue, which showed the dogs’ kennel already under knee-deep waters. The tweet has been viewed over 6.2 million times.

DiPaola wrote, “Rescued six dogs in Leland, NC, after the owner LEFT THEM locked in an outdoor cage that filled with flood water that was rapidly rising. We got them out, but by the time we left, the water was so high that they would have drowned. BRING YOUR PETS WITH YOU!”

Rescued six dogs in Leland, NC, after the owner LEFT THEM locked in an outdoor cage that filled with flood water that was rapidly rising.

We got them out, but by the time we left, the water was so high that they would have drowned. BRING YOUR PETS WITH YOU! #HurricaneFlorence pic.twitter.com/tRibGxCjXy

— Marcus J. DiPaola (@marcusdipaola) September 16, 2018

The rescuer seen on the video was identified as volunteer Ryan Nichols, of Longview, Texas, according to a Unilad report. After being released, the dogs continued to howl and whimper in fear as they made their way to dry ground with guidance from another volunteer who held the camera.

Online response to DiPaola’s tweet was mixed. While some Twitter users condemned the owners for leaving the dogs, user Rachel (@DerrensAngel) from Somerset suggested they could have died trying to check up on the dogs. Rachel may have referred to the 77-year-old man who died after he went outside to check on his hunting dogs, as reported by The Associated Press.

On the other hand, Cathy Pasternak (@cathy_cap2ax) identified the animals as hunting dogs. She claimed that hunters in central Virginia abandoned hunting dogs all the time and added she had already adopted five such dogs from the local shelter.

Florence blew through North Carolina with 145-kilometer-per-hour winds and delivered rain over two feet deep in some areas, according to a recent report. Officials planned to airlift food and water to affected residents. Alfred Bayle /ra

Wedding crasher dog gets adopted by newlyweds

LOOK: Dog wanders with bag of dog food after hurricane passed